After an extremely successful maiden effort in the NASCAR Cup Series last February at Daytona International Speedway, JR Motorsports is coming back to NASCAR’s top level for the season-opening DAYTONA 500.
The organization confirmed the news with a social media post on Friday evening, with Justin Allgaier, the 2024 champion of the NASCAR Xfinity Series (now the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series), set to once again get behind the wheel of the No. 40 Chevrolet.
Traveller Whiskey, the whiskey brand owned by country music superstar Chris Stapleton, will serve as the primary sponsor of the NASCAR Cup Series entry owned by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Kelley Earnhardt-Miller.
Attempting to qualify for ‘The Great American Race’ will mark just the second attempt at starting a NASCAR Cup Series event for the organization that has secured several championships in the sanctioning body’s second-tier division. The team’s only start, though, resulted in an impressive ninth-place result for the Riverton, Illinois-native, after a massive wreck broke out on the final lap of the 500-mile contest, helping Allgaier to advance his position.
Allgaier will be attempting the NASCAR Cup Series season-opener as an unchartered entry, meaning that he and the No. 40 Traveller Whiskey Chevrolet will once again have to face the pressures of racing their way into the event, whether that be through a strong lap in single-vehicle qualifying on Wednesday, or being one of the top finishers among the unchartered entries in one of the Duel events on Thursday evening.
The 25-time NASCAR Xfinity Series winner was forced to be the highest-finishing unchartered entry in the first Duel event at Daytona International Speedway, locking up an emotional berth into the NASCAR Cup Series’ biggest event of the season.
With the off-season just beginning less than two weeks ago, JR Motorsports is the first organization to confirm its intentions to compete in the DAYTONA 500, other than the 36 teams that are currently holding a NASCAR Cup Series Charter.
Since attempting the DAYTONA 500 last February, JR Motorsports has continued to add a number of victories to its tally in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, adding an incredible and record-breaking 18 victories to the team’s tally in 2025 – courtesy of Connor Zilisch, Justin Allgaier, Sammy Smith, Shane Van Gisbergen, and Daniel Suarez.
The 2025 DAYTONA 500 is scheduled to take place on Sunday, February 15, at 2:30 PM ET on FOX.
