Jeffrey Earnhardt all set for multiple starts in 2025 starting with Talladega

Modified Apr 23, 2025 21:54 GMT

NASCAR Xfinity: NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship - Source: Imagn

Jeffrey Earnhardt is set to return to the NASCAR Xfinity Series this weekend for his first race of the 2025 season. The nephew of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and grandson of the late Dale Earnhardt will be behind the wheel of the #24 Sam Hunt Racing Toyota.

This Saturday's Xfinity race at Talladega will mark the first of multiple starts for Earnhardt in the SHR machine. John Newby, a motorsports insider, brought the news to light via X regarding Earnhardt's status with the team. He wrote:

".@JEarnhardt1 will make his first start of the season this weekend at Talladega. @Team_SHR26 said prior to the season that Earnhardt will make multiple starts in the No. 24. #NASCAR"

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Jeffrey Earnhardt made six starts with SHR in 2024, finishing a best of eighth at Atlanta. While Newby noted Earnhardt will be making multiple starts, he reported that the team hasn't specified a full schedule for the driver.

Talladega is a solid starting spot for Earnhardt as he's found moderate success at the 2.66-mile track before. In April of 2022, Earnhardt piloted the #3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, a car and team his grandfather made famous, to a second-place finish at Talladega after starting on the pole and leading 10 laps. He finished second to Noah Gragson in a JR Motorsports car.

In 174 starts, Jeffrey Earnhardt has two top fives and six top 10s in the Xfinity Series. He's driven for a number of different teams across 12 seasons, most notably for Joe Gibbs Racing on a part-time basis in 2019. Earnhardt recorded a career-best third-place finish at Charlotte.

Jeffrey Earnhardt expressed excitement for Talladega Xfinity race with social media post last month

NASCAR Xfinity Series Championship Race - Qualifying - Source: Getty

Jeffrey Earnhardt isn't the most active person on social media, but the part-time Xfinity Series driver took to X last month with a bit of a preview for this weekend's race at Talladega. The driver of the #24 Sam Hunt Racing car made it known that he's looking forward to getting back behind the wheel.

Earnhardt posted a photo of the #26 SHR Toyota, one he drove at the Alabama track last season. He penned a message that expressed his excitement for the race, accompanying the photo, and Tweeted:

"A month away from hitting the banks @TALLADEGA in our @foreverlawninc #blackandgreengrassmachine for @Team_SHR26. Feels like it’s been forever since I been in the car and I can’t wait to get back to hauling grass!!!"

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Amid his part-time career in the Xfinity Series, Jeffrey Earnhardt ran nearly a full Cup Series schedule in 2017. The Mooresville, North Carolina native ran 34 of the 36 races that year behind the wheel of the #33 Circle Sport - The Motorsports Group Chevrolet. He finished a best of 26th three times at Daytona, Indianapolis, and Kansas.

About the author

John Breeden is a NASCAR content writer at Sportskeeda with over three years of sports journalism experience. His career began back in 2021, when he started writing for The Breeze - a student-run publication at James Madison University that covered a wide variety of collegiate sports. He graduated from JMU in May 2022 with a degree in media arts and design concentrating in journalism. He currently writes for his local publication, the Daily News-Record, in Harrisonburg, VA, where he covers a variety of sports at the high school and collegiate level.

John has been a lifelong NASCAR fan and has followed the sport closely since 2005. He stays informed on motorsports developments through social media, NASCAR.com, and NASCAR podcasts, which help him craft unique and engaging stories. Interviewing Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon at Martinsville Speedway was a career highlight for John, where he wrote about William Byron taking the famed No. 24 car back to the Championship 4.

Beyond motorsports, John enjoys writing about other sports such as football, baseball, and basketball. He believes that NASCAR could reach the global popularity of Formula 1 by expanding its audience with more international races and enhancing its mainstream appeal, just like F1 has done.

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Edited by Riddhiman Sarkar