JGR AT BRISTOL: In 123 combined NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, Joe Gibbs Racing has won 13 races at Bristol Motor Speedway. Kyle Busch (8), Erik Jones (2), Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, and Christopher Bell have all taken home victories at the high-banked half-mile for JGR. Outside of victories, JGR has scored 42 top-fives, 63 top-10s, and 3,487 laps led in Bristol.

PLAYOFF PICTURE: Joe Gibbs Racing will enter the first round of the Xfinity Series playoffs with Brandon Jones and Taylor Gray competing for the driver’s championship, and the 19, 20, and 54 teams competing for the Owner’s Championship.

WILLIAM SAWALICH

No. 18 SoundGear Toyota GR Supra

SAWALICH AT BRISTOL: William Sawalich made his first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway earlier this year, but finished 34th after a crash took him out of the race. He is no stranger to the track after winning both of his ARCA Menards Series East (AMSE) starts at Bristol. His 2023 victory clinched his first AMSE championship, and he went back to victory lane in 2024 to secure his second title. Sawalich also has three NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series starts at the Last Great Colosseum with a best finish of 11th.

ST. LOUIS RECAP: Sawalich earned his best career-finish on an oval and his second runner-up finish in as many weeks last weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway. It was his fifth top-10 finish in the last eight races.

ARCA EAST CHAMPION: Last September at Bristol, Sawalich claimed his second-consecutive ARCA Menards Series East (AMSE) championship. He won seven AMSE races in the past two years with 15 top-five finishes on his way to winning both championships. In 2023, he became the first Minnesotan to win the series championship.

ON THE PITBOX: Sawalich is paired with veteran crew chief Jeff Meendering for his rookie year. Meendering has visited Victory Lane 10 times as an Xfinity Series crew chief, most recently with Chandler Smith at Richmond in March 2024. His teams have collected 79 top-five finishes, 155 top-10 finishes, and 17 pole positions under his leadership.

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ARIC ALMIROLA

No. 19 Young Life Toyota GR Supra

ARIC ALMIROLA AT BRISTOL: Almirola’s last appearance at Bristol was in 2023 while competing full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series. In the 2023 Bristol night race, Almirola qualified 26th before finishing 18th. With a total of 26 starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol, the Tampa, Florida native has led over 35 laps at the famous short track. Prior to that, in 2022, Almirola qualified on the pole position.

ST. LOUIS RECAP: In his 11th appearance in the 2025 season with Joe Gibbs Racing, Almirola qualified seventh and finished both stages in second place before finishing sixth at Worldwide Technology Raceway. The veteran driver has a total of four top fives and seven top 10s so far this season.

OWNER’S PLAYOFFS: The No. 19 team enters Bristol as the eighth-seed of the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series Owner’s Playoffs. With sixth playoff points, the No. 19 will rely on Almirola and Justin Bonsignore to fill out the remainder of the 2025 schedule as the team fights for an owner’s championship.

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ON THE PIT BOX: Crew Chief Seth Chavka will oversee the No.19 this season. Chavka is fresh off his rookie season as an Xfinity Series crew chief, where he worked with multiple drivers, including Almirola, Justin Bonsignore, Taylor Gray, Brett Moffitt, Josh Bilicki, Joe Graf Jr., Ty Gibbs, and William Sawalich. Throughout the year, Chavka earned three top-five, seven top-10s, two poles, and his first career win with Almirola at Kansas last season. In Atlanta, Chavka led the No.19 team to a third-place finish with Almirola.

BRANDON JONES

No. 20 Tuscany/Menards Toyota GR Supra

JONES AT BRISTOL: Brandon Jones has made 16 career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Bristol Motor Speedway. In those races, Jones has accumulated four top-fives, eight top-10s, 136 laps led, and an average finish of 12.3. Jones’ best finish came in 2022 with Joe Gibbs Racing when he finished second. He also put together a strong run in 2018, where he led 106 of the race’s 300 laps before coming home with a sixth-place finish. Earlier this season, Jones scored a fifth-place finish at Bristol after starting fourteenth.

PLAYOFF PREVIEW: Brandon Jones enters the round of 12 tied for fourth in the standings, having earned 14 playoff points, which affords him an eight-point cushion above the cutline heading into the first race. During the regular season, Jones scored one win, five top-fives, 10 top-10s, three stage wins, and 91 laps led en route to a sixth-place finish in the regular season standings. With wins at Kansas, Martinsville, and Phoenix, there is a track in each of the three rounds that Jones has won at in his Xfinity Series career.

The Xfinity Series veteran has made the playoffs six times, with his best-career playoff performance coming in 2020 when he finished sixth in the standings. Jones has made the round of eight three times, but has yet to make his first championship four appearance.

ST. LOUIS RECAP: Brandon Jones battled hard in St. Louis to put together a strong day leading into the 2025 Xfinity Series playoffs. After starting 12th, Jones and his team slowly improved the car, going from a 12th-place finish in stage one to a seventh-place finish in stage two. Jones worked his way into contention during the final stage, getting as high as third-place before finishing the day in fourth. The strong performance moved him up a spot in the regular season standings, thus earning him a crucial playoff point heading into the round of 12.

KEEPING IT ON TRACK: Jones has finished 25 of the 26 NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season, which is tied for the most out of all Xfinity Series drivers. His 22 lead-lap finishes also place him in a tie for fourth out of all drivers this season.

ON THE PITBOX: Jones is paired with sophomore crew chief Sam McAulay for the 2025 Xfinity Series season. In McAulay’s first season atop the pit box, the young crew chief led Sheldon Creed to 16 top-fives, 23 top-10s, two poles, and a sixth-place finish in the championship standings. McAulay’s win in Darlington earlier this season marked the first victory in his NXS career. In his career, McAulay has tallied 21 top-fives, 33 top-10s, and one win.

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TAYLOR GRAY

No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra

GRAY AT BRISTOL: Taylor Gray started 11th and finished 19th in his only NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Bristol Motor Speedway earlier this year. In five NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series starts at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile, Gray’s best finish was a fifth-place result in September 2023. Gray also posted a pair of third-place finishes and a seventh-place result in three ARCA Menards Series East starts at the track.

PLAYOFF PREVIEW: Gray enters the playoffs ranked eighth on the playoff grid. During the regular season, he recorded six top-five finishes, 11 top-10s, three pole awards, and 190 laps led. Gray has competed in six of the seven tracks in the Xfinity Series Playoffs. The Charlotte ROVAL will be the only new track for the 20-year-old New Mexico native.

PLAYOFF EXPERIENCE: Last season, Gray gained valuable post-season experience competing in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Playoffs. During the final seven-race stretch, he earned three top-five finishes and five top-10s to end the season sixth in the points standings.

ST. LOUIS RECAP: After starting fifth in St. Louis, Taylor Gray spent the first half of the race fighting around the top-10, with ninth and 11th place finishes in the first two stages, respectively. Despite getting caught up in a wreck during stage three, Gray was able to maintain his lead lap status and finish 17th on the night.

CREW CHIEF: Veteran crew chief Jason Ratcliff is overseeing the No. 54 Xfinity Series team this season. Ratcliff is the winningest crew chief in Xfinity Series history with 57 victories. In 30 Xfinity Series starts at Bristol, Ratcliff’s teams have earned four wins, nine top-five finishes, 13 top-10s, two pole awards, and 921 laps led. Ratcliff also enjoyed success at Bristol in the Cup Series with a pair of wins, five top-five finishes, seven top-10s, one pole award, and 801 laps led.

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