As the engines get ready to roar to life and hit Daytona International Speedway, the newly re-branded O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (FKA Xfinity Series) of NASCAR has the largest crop of newcomers in some time set to already arrive. This combined with a new, easier championship format will usher in a new era for NASCAR’s second-premier series.

While many of these newcomers made sporadic starts across of NASCAR’s feeder series in 2025, the mix of drivers will certainly make for an interesting season. From drivers who have spent several seasons in trucks and the various ARCA series, to hotshot youngsters trying to make a name, to some surprise hires…here is the new crop of drivers set to make an impact in 2026.

Brent Crews

Signing to move up to NASCAR’s OAP Series, Toyota prospect Crews certainly arrives to the series with the least experience on a national level, making his series debut. That said, the 17-year old set the ARCA Menards Series ablaze in 2025, winning four times in only 9 starts…while splitting time in Toyotas fielded by both Venturini and Nitro Motorsports. Crews also had a solid slate of 10 Craftsman Truck Series races… including a near win on the Charlotte ROVAL, a 2nd-place run at Martinsville, and ran his own #70 Toyota to a 17th-place finish at Watkins Glen.

2026 Potential: While Crews’ certainly faces steepest learning curve of the new faces, he also posses the ability to learn and adapt quickly. Crews will run 29 races in Joe Gibbs Racing #19 Toyota, and move to full-time status on his 18th birthday. With solid truck runs on short tracks and road courses, these types of tracks seem to be the best fit for Crews to showcase his potential. That being said, it is important to temper expectations while Crews adapts to the new series and cars

Corey Day

Having slightly more experience then Crews above, is Hendrick Motorsports’ Corey Day. A standout in dirt racing and known for being fast but aggressive, Day moves to the NOAP Series full-time to drive the #17 Chevrolet. The Hendrick prospect has spent the last two seasons in driving Chevrolets for Spire Motorsports and Hendrick across all of NASCAR’s national series’, with mixed results and some already ruffled feathers. The season was not without some highlights in the 2025 Xfinity Series, with finishes of 9th in Gateway, and 4th in Vegas behind the wheel of the #17 Chevy.

2026 Potential: Driving for a powerhouse organization like Hendrick Motorsports, Day will have expectations to perform fast. However, this also combines with a lack of oval experience and a fairly young aggressive attitude. Having already made his presence known in the form of yellow flags in 2025, Day will need to calm down his aggressiveness in order to get laps and learn.

With some surprising Xfinity runs in 2025, Day’s best runs could come at road courses (where his handling on slick tracks comes in to play), as well as the tracks like Vegas where he has experience already.

Rajah Caruth

One of the more interesting situations in the race for rookie honors is Craftsman Truck Series graduate Rajah Caruth. Caruth, who has spent the last four seasons racing trucks for Spire Motorsports, collecting wins in Las Vegas (2024) and Nashville (2025). Caruth also 22 career NOAP starts (including 3 races in 2025), where he has a best finish of 18th in Kansas with Hendrick Motorsports’ #17 entry.

A consistent playoff eligible driver in the truck series, Caruth will level up to a full-time NOAP schedule, running the #88 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, and a 10-race stint with Jordan Anderson Racing in the #32 Chevrolet.  Caruth has shown an ability to be a consistent top-20 driver, while not causing much chaos in a volatile truck series environment.

2026 Potential: Save for two starts with Hendrick Motorsports in 2023 and 2025, Caruth has spent the bulk of his NOAP career racing for Alpha Prime Racing off and on. This opportunity coming into the new season could arguably be the best equipment of his career…so the pressure could be on for quick results despite being split between two teams. Learning should be the goal of 2026, but a solid top-20 debut season can be considered a success.

Lavar Scott

Another wildcard driver diving into the NOAP Series in 2026 is Lavar Scott. Scott has spent the last two full-time seasons in the ARCA Menards Series with an under-funded REV Racing, finishing second in points both times despite not winning. With the closure of REV Racing following 2025, Scott must find a new home….enter the NOAP Series and Alpha Prime Racing. 

The ARCA graduate will drive the #45 Chevrolet full-time for owner Tommy Joe Martins, following his two-race audition in 2025 for Alpha Prime. In two starts Scott drove Alpha Prime’s #45 to 28th (Dover), and 19th (Gateway).

Photo Credit: ARCARacing.com

2026 Potential: The move for Scott up a level to the NOAP Series will present a serious challenge, but one the driver is up to. While not collecting wins in his time with REV Racing, Scott has shown a ability to be tremendously consistent on a variety of tracks, while staying out of trouble. While the increased competition could be a bit of a culture shock initially, Scott is a solid choice for Alpha Prime to develop with some track time. Some late season top-15 or ten runs could not be out of the question, but Scott will need time to develop.

Austin Green

A drive to keep an careful eye on in 2026 is Austin Green. Green, who has honed his skills road racing already, moves to a full-time NOAP schedule debut with newcomer team Peterson Racing. The Peterson team, which has helped field cars in Xfinity off and on the last few seasons, will also move into a full-time roll for the first time. 

Green has 21 career Xfinity starts over the past few seasons (primarily on road courses), driving for Jordan Anderson Racing and Peterson. In those 21 starts, Green has 8 top ten finishes, including a second at the ROVAL in 2025. Keeping with that Charlotte success, Green also won on the oval in his only ARCA Menards Series start of the season with Pinnacle Racing Group’s #82 Chevy. 

Photo Credit: Speedway Digest

2026 Potential: While moving to full-time with a fairly new team also debuting full time could cause some growing pains, Green’s season has some potential to surprise. With his ARCA win at Charlotte in 2025, Green is showing fast progress on ovals as well. With his bread and butter being in road racing, Green’s best chances for success should come at these races, where has already been a consistent contender. With an alliance between Richard Childress Racing and the Peterson team, expect a consistent top-20 driver after some track time while Green continues to learn. A surprise impressive road course performance may not be out of the question either.

Patrick Staropoli

The biggest head scratcher change (no doubt because of funding) comes in the form of former ARCA Menards competitor Patrick Staropoli. Staropoli will be taking over the #48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet following the release of Nick Sanchez after a winning rookie season. Staropoli made his racing return in 2025 following several seasons away from racing altogether to focus on his dental career. 

Staropoli made his initial return with Cook Racing Technologies in the Craftsman Truck Series in 2025, driving the #84 Toyota in four events, with a best finish of 15th in Martinsville. On the NOAP Series side of his 2025, Staropoli also ran four races with Sam Hunt Racing and their #24 Toyota. Martinsville was surprisingly kind to the returning driver, with Xfinity finishes of 16th and 17th in two events. Staropoli also has one ARCA Menards Series West victory in 2014, which came at Irwindale with Bill McAnally’s #99 team.

2026 Potential: Staropoli could face a steep learning curve in 2026, despite his limited 2025 starts. Expectations are already quite high with joining a consistent playoff contender in Big Machine Racing, which could lead to an interesting early season for both team and driver. Staropoli has shown ability on short tracks, but showed tremendous consistency in limited 2025 ARCA starts, with three top tens in six starts.

Time will tell how the new combination of team and driver develops, so it is important to allow Staropoli time to learn in his new NOAP Series venture. The biggest strength could come in crew chief Patrick Donahue, who has guided the #48 Chevrolet since 2021, including two wins in 2022 with Tyler Reddick and 2025 with Sanchez. Donahue also considerable Cup experience guiding newer drivers dating back to 2000.

With the Big Machine Racing team’s recent success, how the season plays out remains to be seen.. but a top twenty season with some surprise finishes is not out of the question. Keep eyes on the #48 on the short tracks especially.