NASCAR Draft Kit: 2019 Xfinity Rankings

1. Christopher Bell - No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – The seven-win, 18 Top-5 finish campaign was quite impressive last season. While it fell short of the championship, thanks to a power outage at the season finale in Homestead, it was a remarkable accomplishment for the 24-year-old driver given that he was racing in his first, full Xfinity Series season. Bell returns for the 2019 campaign and will look to win the championship that eluded him last season. He was the most dominant regular driver in the series, so there's no reason to believe Bell can't win the crown. He will once again be paired with crew chief, Jason Ratcliff, and the very powerful No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team. All systems are go for another dominant season, and possible championship.

2. Austin Cindric - No. 22 Penske Racing Ford – Cindric gets a major upgrade in status for 2019. He takes over the full-time driving duties for the strong No. 22 Ford of Penske Racing. This is the car that has been piloted by multi-driver Cup stars over the last several seasons. Last season alone this team accounted for six victories, 19 Top-5 and 25 Top-10 finishes between its five-driver lineup. Cindric nabbed six Top-5 and nine Top-10 finishes of that overall performance. He'll have to step up his game in the upcoming season, and we believe he will. Cindric is taking over one of the most elite teams in the Xfinity Series garage. After finishing eighth in the final driver standings last year, racing for multiple teams, the consistency of showing up each week in the No. 22 Ford Mustang will do wonders.

3. Kyle Busch/Denny Hamlin/Jeffrey Earnhardt/Erik Jones/Kyle Benjamin - No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – The No. 18 JGR Toyota team remains one of the most dominant, multi-driver teams in the Xfinity Series this season. The lineup gets tweaked a bit with the addition of Earnhardt for at least nine events. He comes over from part-time racing the last four seasons at the Cup level, and will look to have an impact with this strong race team. Busch will get his usual slate of about seven starts, with Hamlin and Jones chipping in about 10 combined starts. That would leave the balance for Benjamin and any other drivers to pick up. This team is always a threat to win, just not as much as in the recent past due to limitations on Cup driver starts. The team will still be a reckonable force each weekend of the season.

4. Cole Custer - No. 00 Stewart Haas Racing Ford – Custer was a little slow to start, but finished last season strong. He would end up with one victory and 26 Top-10 finishes. Custer would pilot the team's Ford in the season finale at Homestead and race for the championship. The SHR youngster put on an impressive show, winning the pole and leading 95 laps, but he would fall second to Tyler Reddick in the race and the championship. It was a great campaign for the 21-year-old and good development of his racing skill. Custer will return to the team and seek the championship again in 2019, although he'll have to do it with a new crew chief. Jeff Meendering moved to Joe Gibbs Racing during the off-season, so Custer will have a new face atop the tool box in the upcoming season.

5. Justin Allgaier - No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – Although he faded down the stretch and failed to race for the championship at Homestead, Allgaier is coming of an incredible season in many respects. He set career-best marks with five wins and 17 Top-5 finishes last year. Only some late-season inconsistency in the playoffs would prevent Allgaier from racing for the championship. The JR Motorsports veteran returns for a ninth season of Xfinity Series racing and he will once again pilot the JRM No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro. It will be hard for the 32-year-old to top his numbers from last season, but we expect Allgaier to come very close and stay relevant in the championship picture once again.

6. Tyler Reddick - No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet – The 2018 Xfinity Series champion gets a new race team for the upcoming season. Reddick moves from JR Motorsports and into Richard Childress Racing's No. 2 Chevrolet. This is the car Matt Tifft piloted last season and then departed for NASCAR's top division. Reddick collected two victories last season, and none more clutch than the season finale at Homestead. That win earned him the Xfinity Series crown. The 23-year-old phenom threw in 20 Top-10 finishes throughout the season to earn high praise from new boss Richard Childress. Consistency was a bit of an issue with Reddick last season, and he'll look to improve on that in 2019. Crew chief, Randall Burnett, guided Tifft to six Top-5 and 19 Top-10 finishes last season, so we expect good things from this new driver/crew chief duo.

7. John Hunter Nemechek - No. 23 GMS Racing Chevrolet – Nemechek will continue his development at GMS Racing this season. He was signed to carry the No. 23 team into the future and continue the good work that Spencer Gallagher started here last year. The team collected one win, six Top-5 and 17 Top-10 finishes between Gallagher and multiple other drivers. Nemechek is one of the budding stars of this racing series. The 21-year-old has already been competing part-time in the truck series for the last six seasons, and last year was his first part-time foray into the Xfinity Series. Nemechek grabbed one win and 11 Top-10 finishes in an 18-race slate at Chip Ganassi Racing. He should be the perfect fit to take over for the retired Gallagher. Chad Norris will continue guiding this team from atop the war wagon, so excellence is an expectation.

8. Noah Gragson - No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – The up-and-coming Gragson moves from full-time competition in the Gander Outdoors Truck Series and into the Xfinity Series in 2019. He has been brought in to replace the retired Elliott Sadler in the No. 1 JRM Chevrolet. Gragson has some big shoes to fill there as Sadler nabbed three victories and 78 Top-10 finishes over his last three seasons of racing in the JRM No. 1 machine. This has been a Top-5 team for each of the last three years. Gragson will be challenged to hit those levels in season one. He's a two-time truck series winner, and finished runner-up in the final standings of that racing series last year. The 20-year-old from Las Vegas, Nevada still has much to learn behind the wheel, and this will be a season of progression and learning.

9. Chase Briscoe - No. 98 Stewart Haas Racing Ford – Stewart Haas Racing and Biagi-DenBeste Racing have decided to take this team from part-time to full-time in 2019. This team's successes in part-time competition are well documented. Aric Almirola, Kevin Harvick and Briscoe have taken this team to victory lane four times in the last three seasons. After last year's two wins and four Top-5 finishes in 12 starts it was decided to bring in Briscoe and go full-time. Briscoe made 17 starts last season between this team and the No. 60 of Roush Fenway Racing. It was his first foray into the Xfinity Series. The 24-year-old driver still has a lot to learn, but it's clear that he has exceptional talent. This team's success in part-time racing teases the possibilities of a full 33-race slate with this up-and-coming driver.

10. Austin Dillon/Daniel Hemric/Brendan Gaughan/Shane Lee - No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet – Hemric's promotion to the Cup Series as a Rookie of the Year candidate effectively moves this team from a single-driver team and into a multi-driver lineup for 2019. Hemric piloted the car to an impressive 16 Top-5 and 23 Top-10 finishes last year. That was good enough to earn a third-place points finish. Now, Hemric will share driving duties with Austin Dillon and a couple other Childress drivers. We expect the level of performance to taper off a bit given the inconsistency behind the steering wheel, but the No. 21 team will still prove to be a competitive, weekly team. With Danny Stockman returning as crew chief, this team will remain among the upper tier in the Xfinity Series.

11. Brandon Jones - No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – Jones is locked-in for season two in Joe Gibbs' No. 19 Toyota Camry. He posted career-best marks of two Top-5 and 17 Top-10 finishes in 2018. The ninth-place standings finish was also a career-best mark for the 21-year-old driver. Gibbs has brought Jones back for another campaign, and brought in new crew chief, Jeff Meendering, in hopes of boosting this young driver's performance. Meendering comes over from Stewart Haas Racing and a runner-up standings finish with Cole Custer last season. Jones is a young, raw talent, although he now has over 100 Xfinity Series starts the last four seasons. That experience and pairing with Meendering should start to show some improvement. This will be a pivotal season in Jones' NASCAR career.

12. Zane Smith/Other Drivers - No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – The California native and next young face in the Xfinity Series will take over the reins of the No. 9 JRM Chevrolet for the departed champion, Tyler Reddick. Smith will race in eight events spread throughout the upcoming year, starting in March at Las Vegas and ending at Dover in October. The 19-year-old talent is fresh off a dominant campaign in the ARCA Series where he nabbed four victories and 12 Top-5 finishes en route to a runner-up finish in the final driver standings of that racing series. Smith will share this ride with other drivers that have yet to be named at the time of this writing. This is a strong race team that has taken both William Byron and Tyler Reddick to the last two Xfinity Series titles. It will be a different story in 2019, but tons of potential for the future with some good finishes along the way as well as a lot of lessons learned.

13. Justin Haley - No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet – The No. 11 Kaulig Racing team is one of the better performing small, one-car teams in the Xfinity Series. They enjoyed a lot of success with both Blake Koch and Ryan Truex over the last three seasons. Truex piloted the team's Chevrolet to a team-best mark of 11 Top-10 finishes in 2018. Haley has been brought in to replace Truex behind the wheel for the upcoming season. He gets the promotion from the Gander Outdoors Truck Series, and a tremendous campaign last season with that team. Haley raced the No. 24 GMS Racing truck to three wins, 18 Top-10 finishes and a third-place points finish at the end of last year. The 19-year-old driver still has lots to learn, but it's clear that he's wildly talented. Haley should have no trouble picking up where Truex left off, and continue moving this team forward.

14. Michael Annett - No. 5 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – Annett just completed his seventh full season of Xfinity Series racing. He will return for his third season at JR Motorsports in the upcoming year. Pilot / Flying J will again be his corporate sponsor and foot the bill for the No. 5 team. Annett is coming off a disappointing campaign in 2018. He collected only three Top-10 finishes for the season and finished a distant 14th in the overall driver standings of last year. It's certainly not the direction this driver and team want to be going in, but JRM and Pilot continue to fund and field a car for this 32-year-old veteran. While it's difficult to see this driver and team improving very much, it is also difficult to imagine them performing any worse. Annett and the No. 5 team are probably looking at a similar 2019 season, and flat line performance.

15. Blake Koch - No. 4 JD Motorsports Chevrolet – Koch is coming off a year on the sidelines after losing his ride at Kaulig Racing at the end of 2017. He was unable to land a ride last season and had to painfully watch from the stands. JD Motorsports has signed him to drive the No. 4 Chevrolet full-time in replacement of the departed Ross Chastain. This team has taken some real strides in recent seasons. Chastain gradually moved them from a middle-teens standings team to as high as 10th-place in last year's driver points. They nabbed a team-best six Top-10 finishes in 2018. Veteran Koch will look to continue this trend line and keep the No. 4 team moving forward. Crew chief, Rob Goodman, returns to the team and will keep continuity at that position. Koch's 200+ starts of experience will be valuable to this race team.

16. Jeremy Clements - No. 51 Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet – At the time of this writing it has not been announced that Clements and the No. 51 team are returning for the 2019 season, but it is very likely to happen and expected. This team has been together in some form or fashion since the 2011 season and should continue to go racing with steady sponsorship. Clements posted his usual two Top-10 and 11 Top-15 finishes in 2018 and that led to a career-best 18.9 average finish for the campaign. His 15th-place finish in the final driver standings is where he's been slotting most of the last eight seasons. The No. 51 team saw modest improvements in a lot of areas last season, and Clements will be challenged to push the bar higher in the upcoming season.

17. Ryan Sieg - No. 39 RSS Racing Chevrolet – Sieg is returning to his RSS Racing No. 39 team once again this season. He's coming off another campaign of two Top-10 and nine Top-15 finishes. It all added up to a fairly typical 16th-place finish in the final driver standings for Sieg. The 31-year-old Georgia native is now across 150 starts plateau and is finding himself a veteran among many younger faces in the Xfinity Series. That experience, albeit with a small race team, is very valuable. Sieg and his veteran crew chief, Kevin Starland, should once again be up to the task of competitive racing in this division of NASCAR. We expect similar numbers and consistency from this driver and team in 2019.

18. Alex Labbe - No. 36 DGM Racing Chevrolet – Labbe was one of the pleasant surprises of last season. The Canadian driver and his DGM Racing team came virtually out of nowhere to claim one Top-10 and five Top-15 finishes en route to a respectable 17th-place finish in the final driver standings. The team's lowly three DNF's speaks volumes of their consistency and excellence. The No. 36 Chevrolet team have not announced their 2019 plans at the time of this writing, but it is expected that both driver and team will return. Labbe's 20.7 average finish and 17th-place points finish were very impressive for a first-full season Xfinity Series campaign. He'll be challenged to push the bar higher in the new season.

19. Garrett Smithley - No. 0 JD Motorsports Chevrolet – Smithley did some great work in 2018 with his JD Motorsports race team. The 26-year-old Georgia native earned one Top-5 and two Top-10 finishes in just his third full season of racing in this division of NASCAR. While week-to-week consistency was a bit of an issue, Smithley still showed some impressive driving skill throughout the 33-race schedule. JDM hasn't announced plans for the 2019 season, but it's expected that this driver and team will return fully intact. The team enjoyed sponsorship from multiple companies in 2018, and hopefully that can pull off the puzzle-work needed to fully fund Smithley and the No. 0 Chevrolet again this season.

20. Joey Gase - No. 35 Go Green Racing Chevrolet – At the time of this writing, Go Green Racing haven't announced their plans for the upcoming season. However, we expect Gase to return for another full schedule with this team in 2019. The eight-season veteran crossed the 200 start plateau last season, so Gase is becoming one of the more experienced regular drivers in the Xfinity Series. He earned three Top-15 and 13 Top-20 finishes last year in the No. 35 Chevrolet. That would slot Gase 20th in the final driver standings with what has become a typical campaign in recent seasons for the 25-year-old. Patrick Donahue would likely return and continue as crew chief for this driver and team.

21. Vinnie Miller - No. 78 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford – Miller has been confirmed in the No. 78 Ford for the 2019 season. He spent much of last season racing in the No. 01 of JD Motorsports, but moved to this team for the final six races of 2018. It was Miller's first full season of Xfinity Series racing, and there were plenty of lessons learned. Among them was his 10 DNF's and 28.8 average finish for the year. The young driver would wind up 27th overall in the final driver standings, and that will be a mark to improve on this season. The move to the No. 78 Ford should help push Miller to new heights. Certainly, we expect him to finish more races in the upcoming season and to make some modest improvement in his average finishing position.

22. David Starr – Jimmy Means Racing - No. 52 Chevrolet – While it's not been confirmed at the time of this writing, it's expected that Starr will return to Jimmy Means Racing in 2019 for a second season of racing in the No. 52 Chevrolet. The 51-year-old veteran started the full schedule for this team last season, racking up seven Top-20 finishes and registering 23rd in the final driver standings. This has been a pretty typical level of performance for Starr over the last few seasons. He's registered 22nd-, 25th- and 23rd-place points finishes since 2016. It should be more of the same in the new campaign. We see little changing with this driver and team and we would expect Tim Brown to return as crew chief.

23. B.J. McLeod/Other Drivers - No. 99 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford – This team is expected to race full-time, but with a number of different drivers behind the wheel. The vast majority of the starts should go to McLeod. It's yet to be determined how many, and who will race alongside the veteran. McLeod has made 25 and 26 starts respectively the last two seasons, however, split between the team's multiple cars. The veteran driver registered five Top-20 finishes last year, but also collected six DNF's. Lack of continuity in the driver's seat limits this team's ability to develop chemistry and race more competitively.

24. Gray Gaulding - No. 08 SS Green Light Racing Chevrolet – After spending much of the last two seasons racing at the Cup level, Gaulding will step into a full-time Xfinity Series ride in 2019. He will take over the seat of the No. 08 Chevy of SS Green Light Racing. Owner, Bobby Dotter, didn't run two teams in 2018, but it appears he has plans to do just that in the upcoming season with Gaulding the pilot of the No. 08 Chevrolet. Crew chief and sponsorship are not clear at the time of this writing, but it is clear the team is gearing up for a full season run. Gaulding's past success has come at the much lower levels of stock car racing, and he has just eight-career starts of Xfinity Series experience. This driver and team should make for an interesting combination.

25. Matt Mills - No. 8 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Ford – The 22-year-old Ohio native is tabbed to take one of BJMM's three full-time teams in 2019. Mills will pilot the No. 8 Ford for the full season with JF Electric and Thompson Electric providing sponsorship. The young driver made just eight starts last season split between several teams, although he ended the year in the No. 8 car with crew chief George Ingram. We believe that combination will return in February at Daytona. With just 11-career starts over the past two seasons of Xfinity Series racing, Mills still has a lot to learn. So the campaign could get very bumpy at times.

26. Brad Keselowski/Ryan Blaney/Joey Logano/Paul Menard - No. 12 Penske Racing Ford – With Austin Cindric taking over the organization's No. 22 Ford full-time, that effectively forces the all-star Penske lineup into the team's second entry, the No. 12 Ford, for 2019. The team will be power-packed with a lot of pop, and race-winning potential. However, the slate of races has yet to be determined. Penske fielded this car just nine times in 2018, and we could be looking at a similar part-time schedule this season. With the likes of Keselowski, Blaney, Logano and Menard behind the wheel, they will be strong when they show up at the race track. This foursome accounted for six-combined victories in the Xfinity Series last year in just 18 starts. This team's likely limited slate of races is the only thing that hinders their fantasy racing potential.

27. Ross Chastain - Team to be Determined – Free Agent – The early January news that Chip Ganassi Racing was shutting down the No. 42 Xfinity Series team due to primary sponsor, DC Solar's legal problems, struck Chastain like a sledgehammer. He was poised to take over this strong race team and run the full season in pursuit of the championship. Instead, with the plug pulled, Chastain is back in the free agent driver pool at the time of this writing. The 26-year-old Florida native is looking for a ride in 2019, and wherever he lands will largely dictate his potential success. Chastain racked up his first-career win and eight Top 10s last season. We doubt that he'll find a ride that will bring him anywhere close to those numbers this season.

28. Driver TBD - No. 15 JD Motorsports Motorsports Chevrolet – As of this writing we have no official word on the plans for this race team. However, JDM fielded this car in all 33 races last season, with only one DNQ (Fort Worth). Several different drivers were behind the wheel and we could see the same situation in 2019. The mob of drivers was able to forge seven Top-20 finishes vs. seven DNF's, so there was some fair consistency despite the multi-driver rotation. Bryan Berry served as crew chief down the stretch run of last year, and should be expected to return in that capacity. This team was among those racing at the back of the pack each week, but they were competitive and not a start-and-park team.

29. Driver TBD - No. 76 SS Green Light Racing Chevrolet – Spencer Boyd raced with this team the full schedule last year, but he's moved onto racing in the Gander Outdoors Truck Series full-time this season. That leaves the No. 76 team a bit in limbo, but likely with the intention to still race full-time. Boyd collected 17 Top-25 finishes and was generally still running at the end of most races. The six DNF's were a respectable level for a team of this caliber. We expect this outfit to likely race with a number of different drivers yet to be named this season. Who they will be at this point is anybody's guess. There are still a handful of competitive drivers in the free agent pool, so options are available.

30. Ryan Reed - Team to be Determined – Free Agent – With the January news that Roush Fenway Racing was ceasing all Xfinity Series efforts with their two race teams, Reed was left without a home in 2019. He spent the past six seasons racing at Roush, and earning two victories and 27 Top-10 finishes over those 171 starts. Now the 25-year-old Californian will test the waters of free agency and see where he can land in the upcoming season. Reed has not been rumored or linked to anyone, so it could be anybody's guess where he lands. One thing is almost certain, it won't be as good a ride as the No. 16 Roush Ford Mustang.

31. Driver TBD - No. 25 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet – RWR didn't compete in the Xfinity Series last season, instead they focused on their Cup Series effort. They have the intention to field this race team full-time in the upcoming season. In 2016 they used a number of different drivers, including Cody Ware. We should see a driver rotation again with this team and a number of drivers. Given past performance we would slot this team in the 25-30th range most weeks. They just lack the equipment and expertise to be any more competitive. The lack of continuity behind the wheel is another limiting factor.

32. Kaz Grala - No. 61 Fury Race Cars Ford – This team raced part-time in 2018 with Grala to good effect. In just 12 starts they collected one Top-5, four Top-10 and eight Top-15 finishes. It was a very impressive effort given the small size of this team, and limited resources. They would wish to race full-time in the upcoming season if enough sponsorship can be found. That's the good news. Veteran crew chief, Shane Wilson, was a steadying presence atop the team's war wagon, and he will likely return in 2019. If sponsorship can be found, this is the team in the bottom end of the rankings that has the most upward potential. However, funding is just a big question mark heading into the new season.

33. Chad Finchum - No. 40 Motorsports Business Management Toyota – MBM is expected to focus their attention on the Xfinity Series this season, and that's the good news for Finchum and this race team. They raced the full schedule last year with exception of one DNQ. Finchum was the pilot for all but one of those starts. The team was running at the end of most races, with the exception of 12 DNF's. It was an attempt at competitive racing. The No. 40 squad should be more focused in the upcoming season, and Finchum now has some valuable seat time to rely on for experience. The 24-year-old driver now has 39 races of experience in this division of NASCAR.

34. Timmy Hill/Carl Long - No. 66 Motorsports Business Management Toyota – The team hasn't announced their 2019 plans as of this writing, but they are expected to attempt the full schedule again this season. The No. 66 Toyota attempted and made all the races but one last season. Hill was the majority pilot with 18 starts. Carl Long was second with six starts. The effort was little more than a start-and-park operation. The team DNF'd 20 of the 33 races, and one DNQ, so it wasn't a competitive ride. The reality is they're probably poised for a similar effort this season.

35. Dale Earnhardt Jr./Chase Elliott - No. 88 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – This team is JR Motorsports' part-time, spot start car. They ran two events last season with Earnhardt behind the wheel at Richmond, and Elliott driving at Daytona. Those efforts were fourth- and 12th-place finishes respectively. The team has explosive potential, and Cup Series stars as potential pilots, but this team's limited schedule is a big factor. The team is expected to continue on a very limited basis, and that's the bad news. When they show up to race, the No. 88 team will be a Top-5 threat. However, they just attempt too few events.