7 NASCAR drivers including Ricky Stenhouse Jr. to participate in 2025 Chili Bowl

Seven NASCAR drivers put their names to race in the upcoming Chili Bowl Nationals, set to take place in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2025. The big names include Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch, Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs, Chase Briscoe, J.J. Yeley, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Chili Bowl is an indoor midget car race on a 0.25-mile track in January every year. The race is called the "Super Bowl of Midget Racing," and is regarded as one of the biggest races in this category.

As per the latest information, 263 drivers enrolled themselves for next year's Chili Bowl Nationals. The event will take place from January 13 to January 18 at SageNet Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Bob Pockrass of Fox Sports, recently took to X to retweet Bell's X post. There, he named the drivers set to run in the Chili Bowl in January. Here's the tweet,

"Christopher Bell will race the Chili Bowl next month. Bell, Larson, Ky Busch, Yeley, Stenhouse among Cup drivers entered."

The most significant name among the seven drivers is undoubtedly Kyle Busch. The #8 Richard Childress Racing driver never entertained racing in the midget series. However, it was different this time as he agreed to go racing off-season.

Kyle Larson and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. are veterans when it comes to Midget Racing. The two aforementioned drivers took part in this year's Chili Bowl Nationals as well, when Stenhouse Jr. had a last-minute entry.

J.J. Yeley made his Chili Bowl Nationals debut in 2007, and among all the drivers on the list, he stands as the most veteran of them all.

Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe have competed in the series before, but it was different in the last two years for the former. The JGR driver could not partake in dirt racing due to his team's strict instructions against it. With Joe Gibbs Racing's recent decision to reverse the guideline, both Briscoe and Bell will race in January.

---

When Ricky Stenhouse Jr. entered the Chili Bowl Nationals in last minute

During the 2024 Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. entered the race at the very last minute. He was speaking to a fellow Cup Series driver, Kyle Larson, almost at the same time he was trying for an entry to the series.

“I was texting with [Kyle] Larson, telling him, the same time you were trying to get your deal together, I was trying to get a deal together, and he said to call Keith [Kunz], which I’ve run for him one other time at the Chili Bowl, and I didn’t really perform the way I wanted to, so I wasn’t sure if he would let me back in one of his cars," the Hyak Motorsport driver said.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47) during the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

However, he went on to send the text, and here's what happened next-

"I shot him a text, and he said, let me get on that, so here we are,” Ricky Stenhouse Jr. explained. “Obviously, Keith has the best cars out there, and they show every night, so I’m looking forward to getting back in a Midget at the Expo to see what we can do.” (As per NASCAR.com)

Stenhouse Jr. competed in Chili Bowl Nationals 17 times and will reach the 18th entry in 2025. His best performance came in 2021 when he finished seventh.