Ross Chastain 2023 season in review

Posted on December 19, 2023December 19, 2023 by Holly Cain

Editor’s note: This continues a series where we review the top 20 drivers in 2023 NASCAR Cup Series points.

Season in review: Ross Chastain
No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Crew chief: Phil Surgen
Final 2023 ranking: 9th
Key stats: Two wins, 10 top fives, 14 top 10s, 640 laps led, one pole position

How 2023 ended: Chastain earned his second career – and second consecutive – NASCAR Cup Series playoff berth in 2023. His win at Nashville Superspeedway locked him into the postseason where he was eliminated in the Round of 12. Although he fell short of the Bill France Cup, Chastain ended the season with a win at Phoenix Raceway that clinched him ninth place in the final standings. The second-year Trackhouse Racing driver was ousted from championship contention after a tough playoff run that included a pair of DNFs – crashes at Talladega Superspeedway and the Floridian’s “home track” at Homestead-Miami Speedway. He had four top-10 finishes in the 10-race playoff run but also three results worse than 20th place. Chastain closed out his second season with Trackhouse Racing by leading 157 of 312 laps at Phoenix and is the only driver in the series technically on a “winning streak” to start 2024.

Best race: Statistically speaking, Chastain’s most impressive outing was his career first win at Nashville Speedway from pole position. He led a race-best 99 laps and eased to almost a 1-second victory over Martin Truex Jr. to officially claim a playoff berth and take over second place in the season standings.

Other season highlights: Chastain equaled his career-best win total (two) by scoring multiple victories for the second straight season. He led the NASCAR Cup Series championship standings for seven weeks and was ranked either first or second for 12 weeks – a full third of the season. He led at least 90 laps in a race five times and his pole position at Nashville was a career first.

Stat to know: While he fell short of his career-best numbers in 2022, Chastain still turned in a season to remember and equaled his best win total (two). His lead lap finishes (28) is a career-best mark, and he also topped the 600-laps led threshold for a second consecutive year. Only four drivers bettered his total of 10 top fives.

Quotable: “I don’t really know how to comprehend that maybe in a couple years we’re still doing this. I’m human. I go back to my past. I’ve had things taken away that were a sure bet. I thought it was a one-direction all the way up the mountain. Had to go find another mountain to climb. We found it. We’re climbing it. I feel as long as I get up, do my best, put my work in, go to work and surround myself with good people, trust our processes. … we’ll see.’’

Looking ahead: Although Chastain obviously would have liked to advance farther in the championship hunt, he did achieve his first career pole position, led more than 600 laps and proved his resiliency at the end of the season, hoisting a trophy even when he was out of playoff contention. Statistically, Chastain proved both his consistency and his resiliency. He now has victories on a diverse set of tracks, from road courses (Circuit of The Americas) to superspeedways (Talladega) to the 1.33-miler at Nashville and the Phoenix mile. It showed that his amazing championship runner-up showing in 2022 was absolutely not a fluke and instead the establishment of a driver ready and skilled to contend for the title year after year.

Posted on December 18, 2023 by Press Release

Patrick Emerling is heading back to his Modified, short-track roots full-time in 2024.

While also planning to run a partial NASCAR Xfinity Series slate, Emerling, now based in North Carolina, will return to race full-time on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and chase his first championship.

In a new partnership with car owner Rich Gautreau, the team will race the full Whelen Modified Tour calendar based in Massachusetts at TFR Distribution, with assistance from Rob Fuller.

Emerling is ecstatic to get back to racing Modifieds on a full-time basis. He’s been splitting time behind the Xfinity Series, NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, Race of Champions Modified Tour and additional events the last two years.

“It’s all coming together quickly and I’m excited to get the new season rolling in just over a month down in Florida,” Emerling said. “We’ve been running Modified events on and off the last few years and focusing on helping get the Emerling-Gase Xfinity program off the ground. We’ve built a great foundation there and have a bright future. I’ll still be in and around the Xfinity Series throughout 2024, but the opportunity to go after the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship is one I couldn’t pass up. We came close to winning the title with our family operation a few years ago and we’re going back there hoping to complete some unfinished business.”

Gautreau, who lives on the West Coast, is a former SK Modified competitor at Stafford Motor Speedway and has been around racing for many years. The team will also welcome crew chief Dale Headquist, for the effort. Dale was the crew chief for Jon McKennedy when the No. 79 team, owned by Tim Lepine, won the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title in 2022 with Jon McKennedy. Emerling and Headquist had spoken from time-to-time over the years, but this opportunity to pin them working together has both of them excited.

“I definitely have to thank Rich for giving me the opportunity in some great equipment,” Emerling said. “We have the potential to go out there and win some races. Worrying about the championship battle would come later in the year… we want to come out of the gates with consistent finishes in the top-five and continue to build towards even greater heights. Winning races and a shot at the title is certainly on our list of goals going into the new year. Racing on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, the competition is second-to-none. The quality of cars, drivers and teams out there is incredible.”

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour 2024 schedule includes 16 events, beginning at New Smyrna Speedway’s World Series of Asphalt Stock Car Racing on Saturday, February 10, 2024. The series has events planned in Florida, Virginia, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York and North Carolina, spanning from February to October.

Posted on December 18, 2023 by Zack Albert

Bubba Wallace described the change in his year-ending points position – from 19th in 2022 to 10th last season – as “a massive jump” as he assessed his campaign during NASCAR Champion’s Week last month in Nashville. The placement was his highest in six full seasons at the NASCAR Cup Series level, but he noted one significant missing piece.

Wallace had scored one victory in each of the previous two seasons, since his start with 23XI Racing in 2021. Last season, Wallace found himself with noticeable improvement – or at least a hold-steady clip – in several key statistics, including average finish and laps led. The rise in performance led to his first appearance in the Cup Series Playoffs, but without a win to show for his final tally.

“Everybody I see in the industry the last couple days have come up to me and continued to remind me how good the season was, and it is when you peel back the layers and look at it,” said Wallace, who last won at Kansas in September 2022 — 43 races ago. “We checked a lot of boxes, but I don’t know if it’s just me being young and hungry, but I got zero wins. So that bugs the hell out of me.

“But yeah, I mean, we made a good run, proud of the efforts from the team. It was a really, really good year. I’m so excited to … not get it started yet because I’m enjoying the downtime, but I’m excited for the next one to start.”

The offseason so far has meant taking some time to explore the town of Banff in Alberta, Canada and its surrounding high peaks. But it’s also meant a period of reflection in the wake of the season-ending event at Phoenix Raceway, where he watched close friend Ryan Blaney clinch his first Cup Series title and where he lamented unintentional contact with Brad Keselowski, prompting a post-race apology.

That capped a campaign that sent Wallace into the Round of 12 before his postseason eligibility expired. The 30-year-old driver’s strongest chances of winning cropped up at a variety of tracks — an overtime bid that went south at Talladega in April, early power that faded at Richmond in July, and a show of dominance that evaporated late at Texas in September.

Those outings could bode well for Wallace next season, as he and 23XI teammate Tyler Reddick return with some newness approaching. The organization is moving toward setting up shop in a new headquarters building, and a new 23XI logo will adorn the team’s gear. The group will also have a reinvigorated Toyota body style for 2024 with the Next Gen Camry XSE set to debut.

What’s not new is the driver lineup, which gains another year of experience and stands to benefit from that core continuity.

“I think moving forward, with Tyler having a year with us and figuring it all out, I think it’s only going to expedite the process on where we want to be,” Wallace says. “I think, there’s a lot of races where we were the top performing two as a team, and I think we want to do that more. And so, we’ve got all the right people in the right spot. The new shop’s going to pump some new life into our guys and into ourselves, and we’re gonna go out and work our asses off this year.”

Posted on December 18, 2023 by Holly Cain

Editor’s note: This continues a series where we review the top 20 drivers in 2023 NASCAR Cup Series points.

Season in review: Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
Crew Chief: Robert “Bootie” Barker
Final 2023 Ranking: 10th
Key stats: 0 wins, five top fives, 10 top 10s, 285 laps led

How 2023 ended: Statistically speaking, the 2023 season ended as the strongest in Wallace’s six-year, full-time career in NASCAR’s Cup Series. He qualified for the playoffs for the first time and scored four of his season’s 10 top-10 finishes during the playoff run — advancing to the second round of playoff competition.

Best race: Although Wallace has made a name for himself with his showing on superspeedways, his 2023 season was highlighted by a third-place finish at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway in the September playoff race, where he led a race-best – and career single-race high — 111 laps.

Other season highlights: Although Wallace did not score a victory this year, he still excelled on track, earning his maiden playoff berth, advancing to the second round, and setting a career-high mark in laps led (285). He was a bona fide contender from the season’s first green flag to its final checkered flag – leading laps and being as competitive at the end of races as at the start. Wallace credits his success this year to tempering his emotions and “keeping my head in the game,” recognizing that some days getting a top 10 with a top-10 car is still a success.

Stat to Know: One of the most significant indicators of Wallace’s strong season is that he nearly doubled his single season laps led total (285) compared to a previous best of 150 last year. He led laps in 12 races – a third of the season schedule.

Quotable: “Definitely being talked about a lot more for our performances and race results, not so much in the negative headlines so that’s good and we’ve just got to continue to build on that. Definitely learned a lot about who I am as a driver and trying to be a better team leader and it’s all starting to click more and more. Just have to get the wick lit earlier in the season and get on a hot streak and keep that flame going.”

Looking ahead: Earning his maiden playoff opportunity was a sign of Wallace’s arrival in the sport’s upper echelon. He doubled his laps led total, equaled career-best marks in top fives and top 10s and will be able to look back on the 2023 season as a real turning point. One of the categories Wallace would like to improve on is his stage win tally. He had zero this season despite earning the ninth-most stage points in the series. He’s won races in two of the last three seasons and in 2023 positioned himself to do so multiple times. Wallace should head into next season with confidence, looking to put all his achievements together – winning races, leading laps and taking top-10 finishes on a mediocre day to advance farther in the playoffs.

Posted on December 16, 2023 by Staff Report

Reigning NASCAR Cup Series champion Ryan Blaney proposed to longtime girlfriend Gianna Tulio this past week, adding an offseason engagement ring to the premier-series title ring he earned in last month’s season finale.

Blaney and Tulio announced their engagement on social media Saturday morning with a picture from snowy Washington state. A date in the Instagram caption indicates that the proposal happened Tuesday — 12-12, which would match up nicely with Blaney’s car No. 12 for Team Penske.

Instagram: @giannatulio and @ryanblaney10

The couple celebrated three years of dating in July.

Blaney scored his first Cup Series championship in November with a runner-up finish in the season-ending race at Phoenix Raceway. Blaney and Tulio were arm-in-arm just two weeks ago for the NASCAR Awards gala at the Music City Center in Nashville.

RELATED: Ryan Blaney through the years

Posted on December 16, 2023December 16, 2023 by Alex Cadavid

The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season is quickly approaching, and with that, there are a handful of newcomers we ought to get to know before the green flag drops in February. Drivers Josh Berry, Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar will be running their first full-time seasons in the Cup Series next year, each with high expectations, bringing a unique skill set and winning aspirations to their new team. Let’s dive in and meet the rookie class.

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

RELATED: 2023-24 Silly Season news

Josh Berry, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
2023 ride: No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, Xfinity Series
2023 stats: 0 wins, 11 top fives, 18 top 10s, 211 laps led
2023 standings finish: 11th

To drive the No. 4 car comes along with a certain set of expectations, and at 33 years old, Berry will be the most seasoned rookie on the grid next year. He steps in to fill the seat that was left by Kevin Harvick, who retired at the end of the 2023 season. While Berry only has 12 cup starts in his career, he received first-hand experience filling in for Cup drivers in a variety of high-profile rides throughout the 2023 season. Whether it was splitting time between the Nos. 9 and 48 at Hendrick Motorsports or getting tapped by Legacy Motor Club for two races, Berry has been adaptable and demonstrated he can excel in the right car with a second-place finish at the Richmond spring race.

Secondly, his consistency over two full seasons in the Xfinity Series stands out. In his final two years with JR Motorsports, Berry raked in three wins, 22 top-five, and 38 top-10 finishes, showing he has a steady hand behind the wheel. With a background in short-track racing, Berry’s driving style is particularly agile and aggressive, which is a testament to how he handled Richmond like a pro this past year. His knack for maintaining focus and delivering consistent performance over a season positions him as a formidable competitor and the perfect fit for SHR as it looks to rebuild.

Zane Smith, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
2023 ride: No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, Craftsman Truck Series
2023 stats: 2 wins, 10 top fives, 10 top 10s, 227 laps led
2023 standings finish: 7th

James Gilbert | Getty Images

Known for his success in the Truck Series, Smith has the championship pedigree to back up his move to the Cup Series. Trackhouse Racing invested in the phenom with a multi-year agreement for the 2022 Trucks Series champ and aims to expand its lineup in 2025 to add Smith. But before all that, Smith has a rookie year to complete. He gave us a preview of what to expect next year by competing in seven races with Front Row Motorsports on the Cup side in 2023, highlighted by one 10th-place finish at Charlotte in the spring.

Smith has displayed his talent and competitive drive throughout his career, from the ARCA Menards Series all the way to the Truck Series. He has totaled nine wins and 35 top-five finishes in 92 career starts in the Truck Series. Winning Sunoco Rookie of the Year has to be on top of his list of goals for his debut campaign, as he won Rookie of the Year in both the ARCA Menards Series (2018) and Truck Series (2020).

Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
2023 ride: No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet, Craftsman Truck Series
2023 stats: 4 wins, 11 top fives, 13 top 10s, 271 laps led
2023 standings finish: 4th

Sean Gardner | Getty Images

Hocevar stepped in late in the 2023 season for Legacy Motor Club to compete in eight out of the 10 playoff races in the midst of his own championship hunt in the Truck Series. He adapted quite nicely, turning in five top-20 performances for a No. 42 team that struggled to regularly finish in the top 25 during the 2023 season. Most noteworthy is how Hocevar erupted for four wins and became a title contender in his third year in the Truck Series.

Hocevar is a rising talent with raw speed and showed he was ready to jump up to the Cup Series after a promising year in Trucks. Hocevar’s racing journey has led him to Spire Motorsports for next season, when he can embark on a path of professional growth — allowing him to collaborate with experienced team personnel such as teammate Corey LaJoie. Access to those resources should amplify his development as a driver while contributing success to an organization looking to grow and expand in the Cup Series.

Berry, Smith and Hocevar each bring different strengths and add depth to the competitive landscape of the NASCAR Cup Series. Their addition to the lineup of 2024 Cup drivers shapes the excitement and anticipation for the new season.

Posted on December 15, 2023 by Pat DeCola

Now that Shane van Gisbergen’s future is clear, it’s about to get a lot more chaotic, too.

“SVG,” the three-time Australian Supercars tour champion, will compete full-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2024 with an additional seven Cup Series starts tacked on, Trackhouse Racing and Kaulig Racing partnered to announce on Wednesday. The first of those starts will come in the season-opening United Rentals 300 (Feb. 17, 5 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Daytona International Speedway — one of NASCAR’s most storied, most prominent, and wildest tracks.

MORE: Trackhouse, Kaulig set up SVG for loaded ’24 schedule

The 34-year-old van Gisbergen’s as technically precise and experienced as they come … but his oval acumen is going to need some seasoning. We saw the talent display itself immediately this past season as the street-racing veteran flexed on the Cup Series regulars and claimed the inaugural Chicago Street Race — in his inaugural NASCAR appearance. He later tacked on another top 10 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, making a trip over to Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park for his first Craftsman Truck Series start that weekend as well.

The 19th-place result at IRP stands as his only oval race. In any NASCAR race. Ever.

Daytona, here he comes!

“It being our first race, I don’t really even know how to approach it or what to expect,” van Gisbergen told reporters Thursday evening during a teleconference. “We get a little bit of practice so I can get a feel for the car and the cars around me, but it’s so far removed from everything I’ve ever done. Superspeedways are what I’m most anxious about, I guess, or unsure about what’s going to happen or how the car drives.”

The New Zealand native and soon-to-be Charlotte, North Carolina native “once (he finds a house) with a fence … they don’t have fences here, which is weird,” has been “doing as much as (he) can on iRacing” and plans to be a regular inhabitant of the sim after the New Year to prep for his debut NASCAR campaign.

RELATED: Trackhouse signs SVG for 2024

Instrumental in his preparation, as well, has been reviewing onboard film from one of the series’ superspeedway greats — three-time Daytona 500 champion, Denny Hamlin.

“Normally, (I’d) watch (superspeedway races) and it just looked like cars driving around flat-out, but nowadays, I’m trying to study it as much as I can. And you know, there was a Denny Hamlin onboard from last year’s Talladega race where he had to come back through the field. I’ve been studying that, just kind of seeing how it all works,” he said. ” … watching that, it’s been like a high-speed chess match, but also the lottery in some ways.”

Van Gisbergen is also expected to run the ARCA Menards Series opener at Daytona as well — as part of an Xfinity Series doubleheader — but there’s no question that SVG’s introduction to full-time stock car racing will be trial by fire.

And there’s no question that he’ll be ready for it.

Posted on December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by Jerry Bonkowski

Editor’s note: This continues a series where we review the top 20 drivers in 2023 NASCAR Cup Series points.

Season in review: Martin Truex Jr., No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Crew chief: James Small
Final 2023 Ranking: 11th
Key stats: 3 wins, 9 top fives, 17 top 10s, 899 laps led

How 2023 ended: Because of such a frustrating season, Truex had contemplated retirement after 2022. But he returned for a strong and successful season in 2023, earning three wins and advancing to the second round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs tied with William Byron for first. Unfortunately, he failed to advance to the Round of 8 and struggled in five of the seven remaining playoff races (four finishes of 17th or lower and one other finish of 12th).

Best race: Truex’s top race was his third and final win of the 2023 season, dominating at Loudon in Race No. 20. He started on the outside pole, won both stages and led a season-high 254 of the event’s 301 laps, holding off runner-up Joey Logano by 0.396 seconds.

Other season highlights: Truex’s other top races were his wins at his home track of Dover Motor Speedway on May 1 and on June 11 at Sonoma. Ironically, both Dover and Sonoma are Truex’s most successful Cup tracks, having recorded four wins at each.

Stat to know: Truex contemplated retirement after a difficult 2022 season, his worst since 2014 (first winless season since 2014; just four top fives and 15 top-10 performances, his fewest in each category also since 2014; and failed to make the playoffs for the first time in seven seasons since, again, 2014). He bounced back in 2023 to make the playoffs with three wins (second-most since seven in 2019), 17 top-10s and three poles (most since four in 2018).

Quotable: Truex on finally winning at Loudon, a track he grew up watching NASCAR races in-person: “I don’t think so (when asked if there has ever been a win he’s wanted more). What we’ve been able to do here over the years is pretty remarkable, and to not win was really getting frustrating. … I sat in Turn 1 (as a kid) with my mom. My little brother was drinking out of a (baby) bottle. This is the first big track I ever came to with my dad and watched and the first time I ever seen Cup cars in person and Busch cars in person. It’s been a special place for us. Being able to win K&N, being able to win the Busch Series, this one (a Cup win there) has been eluding me for a long, long time. So I’m just really, really happy, really thankful.”

Looking ahead: After the disappointment of 2022, the 2023 season was a resurgence for Truex. However, don’t be surprised if he struggles again in 2024. The Mayetta, N.J., native turns 44 on June 29. Another point of reference: he earned 24 of his 34 career Cup wins to date between 2015 and 2019, but has only managed eight wins from 2020 through 2023.

Posted on December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by Zack Albert

The epilogue to Martin Truex Jr.’s 2023 season should almost be delivered in two parts.

The afterword to the veteran’s NASCAR Cup Series campaign begins with a three-win regular season, one that cemented his spot atop the standings once the calendar turned to summer. It’s the 10-race postseason where things turned sour with a string of subpar finishes, and it’s that nettlesome stretch that his Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 team will aim to mend before the new season arrives.

“I think just going back to Victory Lane, it’s what it’s all about when the year starts, and you want to be able to go out and win races,” Truex said before the NASCAR Awards celebration in Nashville last month. “So we really had a really good regular season, and kind of the wheels fell off in the playoffs, but a lot of it was circumstances, and, of course, we made some mistakes and things along the way. We’re gonna try to work on those in the offseason. But, overall, a lot of highlights, a lot of good things, and a lot to build off of.”

The highlights that stood out began with a victory to open the month of May at Dover Motor Speedway, where Truex snapped a 54-race skid and helped to erase the memory of a winless 2022. More strong runs followed and wins at Sonoma and New Hampshire helped to keep him on the inside track to the Regular-Season Championship.

The 15 playoff points he gained by securing that trophy were pivotal in helping Truex advance to the Round of 8, where elimination finally capped a rocky postseason that netted zero top-five finishes. The arrival of the offseason, Truex says, provides the chance for a reset for the No. 19 crew but also some needed downtime before the groundwork for the 2024 season is established.

“I think we do (reset), and we don’t get a whole lot of time to do that, but in the process of preparing for next year, we go over everything, and we talk about everything,” said Truex, who re-signed with JGR with a one-year extension in August. “We’re all gonna get together and have a big go-kart race, so just kind of lay low, do some fun stuff with low pressure, and then in January, kind of ramp it up with getting ready for the season and the details of things. But the guys are working hard already and excited for that to come when it does.”

Posted on December 14, 2023December 14, 2023 by Team Release

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Second-generation racer and champion Layne Riggs is the newest driver of the No. 38 Ford F-150 for Front Row Motorsports, the team announced Thursday. Riggs, the 21-year-old son of former NASCAR Cup Series driver Scott Riggs, is making the step from the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series after starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and Xfinity Series this past year.

The Bahama, N.C. native is the next FRM development driver after both Todd Gilliland and Zane Smith have won races and Smith a championship with the team. Riggs will be making his full-time NASCAR national series debut in 2024 but already has championship experience while climbing through the ranks of NASCAR.

Dylan Cappello will step up from his lead engineer role to be the crew chief of the team. Chris Lawson will step down from his crew chief role and serve as a consultant to the team to begin the season while working on other projects outside of NASCAR.

Beginning his career at the age of 10, Riggs competed in Limited Sportsman events at the Orange County (N.C.) Speedway, where he raced for multiple seasons, eventually earning the track championship. Riggs then moved his career to the CARS Tour, where he raced late-model stock cars for several seasons. He finished his stint in the series with six wins, eight poles, 32 top-five, and 41 top-10 finishes.

In 2022, Riggs focused on the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series. He built an impressive track record featuring 16 wins, 29 top-five, and 35 top-10 finishes across some of the toughest NASCAR tracks in the southeast. Riggs was crowned the 2022 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series National Champion.

This past season, Riggs gained more attention during limited starts in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck and Xfinity Series. He finished third at the Indianapolis Raceway Park in the truck race and followed that with 10th and 11th-place finishes at the end of the season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Martinsville Speedway in the Xfinity Series.

Riggs is now set to compete for the Sunoco Rookie of the Year title in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and is signed to a multi-year agreement with FRM.

“I’m really thankful for this opportunity to compete full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series with one of the best teams in the sport,” said Riggs. “I’ve dedicated my life for an opportunity like this, and I’m incredibly appreciative of Bob (Jenkins) and everyone at Front Row for providing me the opportunity to take my next step in my racing career.”

In addition to his racing schedule, Riggs is set to complete his Mechanical Engineering degree at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC) while participating in full-time competition.

“I really appreciate Layne’s dedication to his education while also competing at the highest levels,” said Front Row owner Jenkins. “That comes from great parenting and a sense of dedication from Layne. We’ve already seen a lot of potential in Layne and he’s a perfect fit for our program to develop him into a national series NASCAR winner.”

FRM is set to announce team partners for Riggs in the lead-up to the Fresh From Florida 250 at the Daytona International Speedway — a race that FRM is the two-time defending winner of.