NASCAR Silly Season heats up as Kaulig Racing set to announce 2025 Xfinity driver

Kaulig Racing, one of the newer Cup Series teams, is about to announce its 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series driver this week.

Kaulig Racing runs three Chevrolets in the Xfinity Series and two Cup Series Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 teams (No. 16 for multiple drivers and No. 31 for Daniel Hemric). Their current Xfinity Series drivers are Josh Williams (No. 11), A. J. Allmendinger (No. 16), and Shane van Gisbergen (No. 97 in partnership with Trackhouse Racing). The team also runs the No. 10 part-time for Daniel Dye.

The team's Xfinity driver for 2025 will be revealed this Friday (August 23) at The Chevrolet Experience Center at Daytona International Speedway at 2:00 PM ET.

The team is also finalizing its Cup Series driver lineup. A. J. Allmendinger has been confirmed to race full-time in the Cup Series but the second full-time spot is still up in the air.

Daniel Hemric, driver of the No. 31 car, does not have a contract for next season. Ty Dillon, who made a few starts for Kaulig Racing in 2024, is a possible candidate. However, sponsorship could influence the final decision.

Moreover, another possible candidate for their Xfinity or Cup Series team could be Christian Eckes. Eckes currently drives the No. 19 truck in the NASCAR's Truck Series and has had 14 top-10 finishes in 15 races.

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A. J. Allmendinger to return to Kaulig Racing

Kaulig Racing, owned by Matt Kaulig, is relatively new to NASCAR's Cup Series. The team first appeared in the 2020 Daytona 500 and has since earned two road course wins with veteran driver A. J. Allmendinger.

The team started with a part-time schedule in 2020, with drivers like Kaz Grala, Allmendinger, and Justin Haley participating in select races. Allmendinger won the team’s first race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in the team's second year.

The team moved to full-time competition in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series with two charters from Spire Motorsports. Justin Haley drove one of the team’s cars full-time, while the other car had multiple drivers.

Allmendinger made his Cup Series debut in the No. 16 car in 2023 but stepped down to focus on Xfinity last year. However, the team recently announced on social media that A. J. Allmendinger will return to the NASCAR Cup Series full-time in 2025. He will use the same car he drove during the 2023 season.

"We know where he’ll be in 2025, @AJDinger will return to full-time @NASCAR Cup Series competition for Kaulig Racing!" (via X/@KauligRacing)