JOE GIBBS RACING

JGR AT WATKINS GLEN: In 56 combined starts at Watkins Glen International, Joe Gibbs Racing has scored two wins, 20 top-fives, 29 top-10s, and 330 laps led. Kyle Busch (2017) and Ty Gibbs (2021) each drove a Joe Gibbs Racing entry to victory lane at the upstate New York road course.

WILLIAM SAWALICH

No. 18 SoundGear Toyota GR Supra

SAWALICH AT WATKINS GLEN: While this weekend will be his first Xfinity Series start, William Sawalich has two ARCA Menards Series starts at Watkins Glen International with two top-five finishes. Sawalich will run double-duty this weekend also running the No. 1 for TRICON Garage on Friday at the road course.

SAWALICH ON ROAD COURSES: Sawalich has shown success on road courses this season with three top-10 finishes in four races. A ninth-place at Circuit of the Americas, sixth-place at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico, and third-place at Sonoma Raceway gives Sawalich an average finish of sixth in completed road course races. In Chicago, Sawalich qualified seventh and was running in the top-10 before mechanical issues took him out of the race early.

IOWA RECAP: Sawalich earned his fifth top-10 of the season last weekend in the rain-shortened race at Dover Motor Speedway. Sawalich earned stage points with an eighth-place finish in stage one and a ninth-place finish in stage two.

ARCA EAST CHAMPION: Sawalich claimed his second consecutive ARCA Menards Series East (AMSE) championship at Bristol Motor Speedway in 2024. Sawalich won seven AMSE races in the past two years with 15 top-five finishes on his way to winning two 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 77 top-five finishes, 153 top-10 finishes, and 17 pole positions under his leadership.

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RILEY HERBST

No. 19 Monster Energy Toyota GR Supra

RILEY HERBST AT WATKINS GLEN: In 2024, on a full-time schedule in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, Herbst qualified 12th and finished 13th. Herbst has a total of four starts at Watkins Glen International with one top-10 and four laps led. Herbst’s best finish at the historic road course came in 2022, when he finished seventh.

DOUBLE DUTY: In addition to the Xfinity Series race on Saturday, Herbst will make his first appearance at Watkins Glen International in the NASCAR Cup Series behind the wheel of the No. 35 Toyota Camry XSE for 23XI Racing.

RILEY HERBST AT SONOMA: So far this season, with three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts with Joe Gibbs Racing, Herbst has a total of two top fives and seven laps led at COTA. His last appearance with Joe Gibbs Racing at Sonoma Herbst qualified 15th and finished fifth in the No.19 Monster Toyota GR Supra. This was the Las Vegas native’s best finish at Sonoma Raceway in both the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Cup Series.

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 Pelonis/Menards Toyota GR Supra

JONES AT WATKINS GLEN: Brandon Jones returns to Watkins Glen for his ninth career Xfinity Series start at the historic road course. In eight prior starts, Jones has two top-10s, one lap led, and an average finish of 15.0. Jones’ best finish at ‘The Glen’ came in 2021 with Joe Gibbs Racing when he scored a sixth-place finish. Jones has also made three ARCA Menards Series starts at Watkins Glen, highlighted by a win with Joe Gibbs Racing in 2022.

IOWA RECAP: Brandon Jones and his Criterion/Menards Toyota team showed race-winning speed in Iowa but were ultimately derailed by a string of miscues. After qualifying 12th, Jones finished 11th in stage one, followed by a strong performance in stage two to secure a second-place finish. Early in stage three, he was penalized for speeding on pit road. After rallying back into the top five, Jones spun with 26 laps remaining. Despite a damaged racecar, he continued in the race en route to a 23rd-place finish.

KEEPING IT ON TRACK: Jones has finished 21 of the 22 NASCAR Xfinity Series races this season, which is tied for the third-most out of all Xfinity Series drivers. His 19 lead-lap finishes also places him in a tie for fifth 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 20 top-fives, 30 top-10s, and one win.

MENARDS: Menards will continue their longstanding partnership with Jones throughout the 2025 season. Beginning with Jones’ first career Xfinity Series, which started in 2015, Menards and Jones will now enter their 11th year together. The Midwestern home improvement retail chain is known for offering a wide range of building materials, tools, and household products at competitive prices. Founded in 1960, it operates over 300 stores across the U.S., catering to both DIYers and professional contractors.

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TAYLOR GRAY

No. 54 Operation 300 Toyota GR Supra

GRAY AT WATKINS GLEN: Saturday’s race will be Taylor Gray’s first NASCAR Xfinity Series start at Watkins Glen International. The Upstate New York road course was the site of his NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series debut in August 2021. He posted a pair of top-10 finishes in two ARCA Menards Series starts at the track in 2021 and 2022.

GRAY ON ROAD COURSES: In four Xfinity Series starts on road courses this season, Gray has finished seventh or better three times. His best result was a second-place finish at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. In six NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series starts on road courses, Gray’s best performance came last year when he started third and finished second at Circuit of the Americas. The New Mexico native also claimed an ARCA Menards Series victory at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in July 2022.

IOWA RECAP: Gray finished 17th in last weekend’s race at Iowa Speedway. After starting from the rear of the field after a brake issue during practice, the No. 54 driver quickly worked his way forward to 12th by the end of the opening stage. During stage two, he climbed to third. He spent most of the final segment running second before a hiccup on pit road dropped him outside the top 10 in the closing laps.

HEATING UP: Over the past eight races, Gray has scored the third-most points among all Xfinity Series drivers. During that stretch, he has tallied three top-five finishes, six top-10s, and a 10.5-average finishing position.

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. At Watkins Glen International, Ratcliff’s Xfinity Series teams have posted seven top-five finishes, nine top-10s, one pole award, and 159 laps led. During his time in the NASCAR Cup Series, Ratcliff led his teams to two top-five finishes and four top-10s in six starts at The Glen.

OPERATION 300: The No. 54 Toyota will feature Operation 300 for Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International. Operation 300 is a registered 501(c)3 not for profit organization that hosts weekend-long adventure camps for children who have lost a parent as a result of military service. Each child is paired with a father-aged, male mentor who spends the weekend doing things with the children they might have done with their parent. For more information, visit http://www.op300.org.