New Sponsor Brings Name Change to NASCAR Xfinity Series
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
NASCAR's secondary racing division, the Xfinity Series, will undergo a name change in 2026 as a result of a new sponsorship deal with O'Reilly Auto Parts. Xfinity has held the naming rights since 2015, but that will change next year to the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series.
Originally launched in 1982, the No. 2 racing division below the Cup Series was called the Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series, before becoming the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series from 1984 to 2002. The name was then modified to the NASCAR Busch Series until it was taken over by Nationwide in 2008. It was then rebranded to the NASCAR Nationwide Series until 2014.
The Xfinity Series has witnessed an impressive viewership growth of around 17 percent in the first year of its partnership with The CW Network, averaging 1.1 million viewers in each race.
Now, NASCAR announced a multi-year deal with Missouri-based O'Reilly Auto Parts, which sponsored races for several years. NASCAR President Steve O'Donnell said in a statement:
Harrison Burton, driver of the #25 AirBox Ford, Christian Eckes, driver of the #16 Celsius Chevrolet, and Nick Sanchez, driver of the #48 Borchetta Bourbon Chevrolet, race during the NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 at...
Harrison Burton, driver of the #25 AirBox Ford, Christian Eckes, driver of the #16 Celsius Chevrolet, and Nick Sanchez, driver of the #48 Borchetta Bourbon Chevrolet, race during the NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen at Watkins Glen International on August 09, 2025 in Watkins Glen, New York. More"Like the great sport of NASCAR, O'Reilly Auto Parts was born in America and built on the hard work and drive of passionate people. This new partnership allows us to continue to fuel that passion for the next generation of NASCAR's stars and fans while celebrating the journey we've been on together for decades."
O'Reilly Auto Parts President Brent Kirby added:
"Our company is rooted in the same values that define NASCAR — teamwork, enthusiasm and dedication. You'll see those in action when our customers walk through our doors. We know they need fast service, and Team O'Reilly will get them the parts they need quickly, with excellent customer service. We welcome all fans to stop by our stores and see how our team can help keep them running."
Hugo Sanchez, O'Reilly Auto Parts vice president of advertising and marketing, said:
"Partnering with NASCAR and The CW at this level enables us to further deepen our connection to one of the most loyal fanbases in all of sports. This agreement builds on our long-term involvement in NASCAR and our dedication to the fans who love cars as much as we do."
The CW will continue to broadcast the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series next year. Commenting on the new deal, Brad Schwartz, President of The CW Network, said:
"The success of NASCAR on The CW has shown that millions of fans will consistently tune in for these adrenaline-fueled races every week.
"This exciting new partnership with O'Reilly Auto Parts gives us the opportunity to expand that reach even further by tapping into our mutually strong presence in local communities nationwide and continuing to grow our passionate audience in the years to come."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
NASCAR: Will a surprise winner again steal one of the last two Cup Series playoff spots available at Daytona?
Fourteen of the 16 spots in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs are taken. Austin Dillon's surprise win at Richmond made him the 14th winner of the 2025 season. The victory came a year after Dillon won at Richmond when he crashed Joey Logano on the last lap in an attempt to get a playoff berth. Though Dillon officially kept the win, NASCAR revoked his playoff privileges from the victory and Dillon failed to qualify for the postseason. This year, he's in. Dillon became the third driver to get a victory in 2025 despite currently sitting outside the top 20 in the points standings. Josh Berry (22nd) won the third race of the season at Las Vegas. And Shane van Gisbergen (24th) has dominated road courses thanks to his excellence in Australian Supercars. But he doesn't have any top-10 finishes on oval tracks. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] With Dillon winning his way into the playoffs, there are just two playoff spots up for grabs on Saturday night at Daytona (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC). If a winless driver becomes the 15th winner of the season, just one driver will make it into the playoffs via his position in the points standings. And you don't have to go back very far to find the last time a driver snuck his way into the playoffs at Daytona. A year ago, Harrison Burton got the lone victory of his Cup Series career to get into the playoffs. Burton led only the final lap as the seven-caution race featured two massive crashes. Can a similar surprise happen in 2025? Here's a look at how the playoff race looks ahead of the final race of the Cup Series regular season. All odds are from BetMGM. Already in the playoffs Denny Hamlin (4 wins) Shane van Gisbergen (4) Kyle Larson (3) Christopher Bell (3) William Byron (2) Chase Elliott (1) Ryan Blaney (1) Chase Briscoe (1) Bubba Wallace (1) Joey Logano (1) Ross Chastain (1) Austin Cindric (1) Josh Berry (1) Austin Dillon (1) Larson and Hamlin are the co-favorites for the Cup Series title at +400 while Bell is at +450. Van Gisbergen is currently third with 22 playoff points but is 80-1 to win the title thanks to his inability to get a top-10 outside of a road course. Elliott's early end to his Richmond race means that William Byron will win the regular-season title and start the playoffs with the most playoff points. The Team Penske trio of Blaney, Logano and Cindric are the three favorites to win Saturday night's race thanks to their prowess at drafting tracks. Blaney and Logano are 10-1 to win while Cindric is 12-1. Would love a repeat winner Tyler Reddick (714 points) Alex Bowman (685 points) Both Reddick and Bowman would love a Team Penske driver — or any driver with a win, for that matter — to get to victory lane if neither of them are going to make it. Bowman is 60 points ahead of Chris Buescher in the points standings; Buescher cannot catch him without getting a win to automatically qualify himself for the playoffs. If there is a new winner, Reddick has a 29-point advantage over Bowman for what would be the final playoff spot. But we've seen points deficits like that get erased at tracks like Daytona and Talladega before. All it takes is an early crash. Needs to win to get in Chris Buescher (20-1 to win Daytona) Ryan Preece (25-1) Kyle Busch (14-1) Ty Gibbs (35-1) AJ Allmendinger (60-1) Brad Keselowski (13-1) Carson Hocevar (35-1) Michael McDowell (40-1) Erik Jones (40-1) John Hunter Nemechek (60-1) Zane Smith (60-1) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (20-1) Daniel Suarez (40-1) Justin Haley (60-1) Todd Gilliland (50-1) Ty Dillon (30-1) Noah Gragson (50-1) Cole Custer (60-1) Riley Herbst (80-1) Cody Ware (200-1) Keselowski and Busch are considered the favorites among the winless drivers to get a win and make the postseason. It's been a rough year for both former Cup Series champions. Busch is 16th in the points standings and has just two top-five finishes. Keselowski has shown speed recently, but he's 19th with four top-five finishes. Keselowski could be staring at all three of his Roush Fenway Keselowski cars missing the playoffs if neither he, Buescher or Ryan Preece win on Saturday. Buescher and Preece are currently 11th and 13th in the standings, respectively. In most years, that's enough to get you into the postseason. Not this year with three winners outside the top 20 in the standings. Both Stenhouse and McDowell are former Daytona 500 champions and could be in position for a victory late in the race. Ty Dillon is 15 places behind 17th-place Ty Gibbs in the standings but has shorter odds to get a victory.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
NASCAR: Will a surprise winner again steal one of the last two Cup Series playoff spots available at Daytona?
Fourteen of the 16 spots in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs are taken. Austin Dillon's surprise win at Richmond made him the 14th winner of the 2025 season. The victory came a year after Dillon won at Richmond when he crashed Joey Logano on the last lap in an attempt to get a playoff berth. Though Dillon officially kept the win, NASCAR revoked his playoff privileges from the victory and Dillon failed to qualify for the postseason. This year, he's in. Dillon became the third driver to get a victory in 2025 despite currently sitting outside the top 20 in the points standings. Josh Berry (22nd) won the third race of the season at Las Vegas. And Shane van Gisbergen (24th) has dominated road courses thanks to his excellence in Australian Supercars. But he doesn't have any top-10 finishes on oval tracks. With Dillon winning his way into the playoffs, there are just two playoff spots up for grabs on Saturday night in Daytona (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC). If a winless driver becomes the 15th winner of the season, just one driver will make it into the playoffs via his position in the points standings. And you don't have to go back very far to find the last time a driver snuck his way into the playoffs at Daytona. A year ago, Harrison Burton got the first victory of his Cup Series career to get into the playoffs. Burton led only the final lap as the seven-caution race featured two massive crashes. Can a similar surprise happen in 2025? Here's a look at how the playoff race looks ahead of the final race of the Cup Series regular season. All odds are from BetMGM. Already in the playoffs Denny Hamlin (4 wins) Shane van Gisbergen (4) Kyle Larson (3) Christopher Bell (3) William Byron (2) Chase Elliott (1) Ryan Blaney (1) Chase Briscoe (1) Bubba Wallace (1) Joey Logano (1) Ross Chastain (1) Austin Cindric (1) Josh Berry (1) Austin Dillon (1) Larson and Hamlin are the co-favorites for the Cup Series title at +400 while Bell is at +450. van Gisbergen is currently third with 22 playoff points but is 80-1 to win the title thanks to his inability to get a top-10 outside of a road course. Chase Elliott's early end to his Richmond race means that William Byron will win the regular-season title and start the playoffs with the most playoff points. The Team Penske trio of Blaney, Logano and Cindric are the three favorites to win Saturday night's race thanks to their prowess at drafting tracks. Blaney and Logano are 10-1 to win while Cindric is 12-1. Would love a repeat winner Tyler Reddick (714 points) Alex Bowman (685 points) Both Reddick and Bowman would love a Team Penske driver — or any driver with a win, for that matter — to get to victory lane if neither of them are going to make it. Bowman is 60 points ahead of Chris Buescher in the points standings; Buescher cannot catch him without getting a win to automatically qualify himself for the playoffs. If there is a new winner, Reddick has a 29-point advantage over Bowman for what would be the final playoff spot. But we've seen points deficits like that get erased at tracks like Daytona and Talladega before. All it takes is an early crash. Needs to win to get in Chris Buescher (20-1 to win Daytona) Ryan Preece (25-1) Kyle Busch (14-1) Ty Gibbs (35-1) AJ Allmendinger (60-1) Brad Keselowski (13-1) Carson Hocevar (35-1) Michael McDowell (40-1) Erik Jones (40-1) John Hunter Nemechek (60-1) Zane Smith (60-1) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (20-1) Daniel Suarez (40-1) Justin Haley (60-1) Todd Gilliland (50-1) Ty Dillon (30-1) Noah Gragson (50-1) Cole Custer (60-1) Riley Herbst (80-1) Cody Ware (200-1) Keselowski and Busch are considered the favorites among the winless drivers to get a win and make the postseason. It's been a rough year for both Cup Series champions. Busch is 16th in the points standings and has just two top-five finishes. Keselowski has shown speed recently, but he's 19th with four top-five finishes. Keselowski could be staring at all three of his Roush Fenway Keselowski cars missing the playoffs if neither he, Buescher or Ryan Preece win on Saturday. Buescher and Preece are currently 11th and 13th in the standings, respectively. In most years, that's enough to get you into the postseason. Not this year with three winners outside the top 20 in the standings. Both Stenhouse and McDowell are former Daytona 500 champions and could be in position for a victory late in the race. Ty Dillon is 15 places behind 17th-place Ty Gibbs in the standings but has shorter odds to get a victory.
Business Journals
an hour ago
- Business Journals
NASCAR announces playoff race will return to World Wide Technology Raceway for 2026 season
NASCAR is less than a month from speeding around World Wide Technology Raceway for the Enjoy Illinois 300 NASCAR Cup Playoff Race, and it won't be the last time a playoff race is held at the facility. On Wednesday, NASCAR announced that the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series will include a return to World Wide Technology Raceway. The second race of the playoffs will be held at the Madison, Illinois, track on Sept. 13, 2026. The 2026 race will mark the fifth consecutive season that NASCAR has held a race at WWT Raceway. 'The fans in this region are passionate and create an extraordinary atmosphere for the entire weekend," WWT Raceway Owner and CEO Curtis Francois said in a press release. "We are proud of how this event continues to evolve and we anticipate it continuing to grow again next season.' GET TO KNOW YOUR CITY Find Local Events Near You Connect with a community of local professionals. Explore All Events In addition to the NASCAR Cup Series race, the weekend will include the NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly NASCAR Xfinity Series) regular-season finale. It will be a packed weekend of entertainment with the Confluence Music Festival expected to return as well. The festival brings live music on stages located inside the track, multiple locations on the midway and in the campground starting on Thursday of race week. This year's Confluence Music Festival includes Jon Pardi, Ella Langley and Lil Jon. For KSDK's full report, click here
