NASCAR‘s Xfinity Series signed O’Reilly Auto Parts as its new title sponsor starting from the 2026 season. That led former driver and Fox NASCAR presenter Kevin Harvick to question if the secondary racing division should have a permanent identity, separate from the title sponsor.
As a result of the new sponsor signing, the Xfinity Series will be called the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series from next year, prompting Harvick to compare it to the Truck and Cup Series. He pointed out how the Craftsman Truck Series will still be known as the Truck Series, regardless of the sponsor identity.
The same applies to the Cup Series, which has had the same identity for many years, leading Harvick to call for a “consistent identity” for the Xfinity Series. Speaking on his Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour podcast, he said:
“I’m really happy for what is the Xfinity Series now to have O’Reilly come in and sponsor the series, but I have a lot of questions. Are they the same company as Advance Auto Parts? So, what happens to the Advance Auto Parts weekly sponsorship?
“The second thing that I think we need to work on is we need some identity for this series. We have the NASCAR Cup Series, and we have the Bill France Cup, and we have all these things that are true to the Cup Series. The trucks are the easy one, right? They’re just trucks.
“Even if Craftsman is not there, it’s still the Truck Series, and then you have the Cup Series. So, what is the Xfinity Series? So, next year, are we going to be O’Reilly Series? And then everybody’s going to be like ‘What the hell is the O’Reilly Series?’ I don’t know. I just think that we need some consistent identity for the Xfinity Series as to what is it.”
NASCAR’s No. 2 racing division was called the Budweiser Late Model Sportsman Series when it was introduced in 1982. The series then became the NASCAR Busch Grand National Series from 1984 to 2002, before being shortened to the NASCAR Busch Series. In 2008, Nationwide took over as the title sponsor, with the series rebranded to the NASCAR Nationwide Series until 2014. In 2015, a new deal with Xfinity renamed the series to the Xfinity Series.
Speaking on the new deal with Missouri-based O’Reilly Auto Parts, NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell said in a statement:
“Like the great sport of NASCAR, O’Reilly Auto Parts was born in America and built on the hard work and drive of passionate people. This new partnership allows us to continue to fuel that passion for the next generation of NASCAR’s stars and fans while celebrating the journey we’ve been on together for decades.”
O’Reilly Auto Parts President Brent Kirby added:
“Our company is rooted in the same values that define NASCAR — teamwork, enthusiasm and dedication. You’ll see those in action when our customers walk through our doors. We know they need fast service, and Team O’Reilly will get them the parts they need quickly, with excellent customer service. We welcome all fans to stop by our stores and see how our team can help keep them running.”
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