NASCAR Draft Kit: 2020 Xfinity Rankings

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Updated on January 18, 2020 3:57PM EST

1. Justin Allgaier – No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – With the promotion of several prodigy Xfinity Series drivers to NASCAR's Cup Series this season, Allgaier stands out as the experienced veteran ready to take the spot light. He found victory lane hard to come by with Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Cole Custer around, but he should resume being one of the drivers to beat each week with the new-look Xfinity Series driver field. The JR Motorsports veteran racked up 16 Top-5 and 24 Top-10 finishes last season. He'll once again be paired with crew chief Jason Burdett, and the two will become the front runners for the championship. We could easily see Allgaier return to the form that saw him win five races in 2018. His first Xfinity Series championship is a real possibility in 2020.

2. Austin Cindric – No. 22 Penske Racing Ford – Cindric was the most improved driver of last season's second half. After a slow start in the Penske Racing No. 22 Ford, the young driver came on strong and posted three pole positions and two victories in the final half of 2019. While Cindric didn't race for the championship at Homestead, he still finished a respectable fifth-place in the driver points. The 14 Top-5 and 24 Top-10 finish campaign was a good salvage job to a slow start to last season. Cindric will now take what he's learned in 67-career starts in this division of NASCAR and apply it to this

3. Chase Briscoe – No. 98 Stewart Haas Racing Ford – Stewart Haas Racing has brought Briscoe back for another season in the team's No. 98 Ford Mustang. He captured Rookie of the Year honors last season with a one win, 26 Top-10 finish campaign. With Cole Custer now gone, and Stewart Haas Racing reducing from two to one team, Briscoe will become the focal point of SHR in the Xfinity Series. Richard Boswell will return atop the team's war wagon and continue mentoring and guiding this young driver. The two developed a lot of chemistry last season and it led to some great results. With so many talented drivers promoting to the Cup Series over the off-season, Briscoe's star should shine a little brighter in 2020. He's the new, big prospect driver at Stewart Haas Racing.

4. Noah Gragson – No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – The 21-year-old prospect had a good inaugural season with JRM and racing in the Xfinity Series. Although Gragson didn't find victory lane, he found a pretty good consistency that showed up on the track and in the finishes each week. He piloted the No. 9 JRM Chevrolet Camaro to nine Top-5 and 22 Top-10 finishes and wound up eighth in the overall driver standings. It would result in Gragson finishing eighth overall in the championship standings. It was a good rookie campaign, and one to build on for Gragson. It is expected that all parts of this team will return intact for the 2020 season. Dave Elenz will continue to call the shots from the crew chief position, and continue building a rapport with Gragson. This young driver has a lot of upside and more room to grow than most of the drivers in the top tier of these rankings.

5. Ross Chastain – No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet – After a wildly successful part-time campaign in 2019, Chastain will take the reins of a Kaulig Racing Camaro for the full season in 2020. The journeyman driver focused mainly on the truck series last season, but Chastain did squeeze in a 19-start campaign in the Xfinity Series. He split the starts between two teams, but enjoyed most of his success with Kaulig Racing. Chastain nabbed a win in the summer Daytona race, a runner-up finish at Fort Worth in the fall and five total Top-10 finishes. The potential for a full season was so tantalizing that team owner, Matthew Kaulig, has put the veteran driver in the No. 10 entry for a championship run. The crew chief is not known at the point of this writing, but should be of little concern. This is an up-and-coming race team, and Chastain will give them the opportunity to win most race weekends.

6. Harrison Burton – No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – The Joe Gibbs Racing development driver takes over the No. 20 Toyota Supra that Christopher Bell piloted the last few seasons. Bell won a staggering 16 races and claimed 46 Top-10 finishes spread over the last three seasons with this race team. Burton will have some very big shoes to fill indeed. The 19-year-old Burton spent the last four seasons prepping in the Gander Truck Series as well as some racing in the K&N Pro Series East and ARCA. He won the 2017 K&N Pro Series East championship, and racked up five victories in that series while also winning three-career ARCA events. However, Burton didn't enjoy nearly that much success in 38-career truck series starts. We believe that illustrates that he has some talent, but has yet to discover all his potential. It could take some time to find it even with this strong race team.

7. Brandon Jones – No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – Jones returns for his fifth full-time season of Xfinity Series action in 2020. It will be his third with Joe Gibbs Racing, and the results could be the best yet. Jones enjoyed a career-best campaign in 2019. He grabbed his first-career victory (Kansas Speedway) late in the season and posted a career-best mark with six Top-5 finishes. Jones' progression over the course of last season was the most encouraging thing to see as he rounded out the year strong. With Jeff Meendering returning as crew chief in 2020, we expect to see the growth continue for this driver and team. We expect Jones to tally another Xfinity Series victory and likely break the 20 Top-10 finish mark. Now with 130+ starts in this division of NASCAR, his experience is starting to show.

8. Michael Annett – No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – The JR Motorsports veteran turned in a career-best performance last season in the No. 1 Chevrolet Camaro. Annett nabbed his first-career victory with a big win in the season-opener at Daytona. He would ride that wave of momentum and post great results through the first half of the season. Annett would cool a bit in the second half of 2019, but still finish the year with a career-best one win, six Top-5 and 19 Top-10 finishes. He'll be hard pressed to improve on those marks in 2020, but is more likely to turn out a carbon copy of that performance. Annett is in the middle of a multi-year deal with JRM and always has had steady sponsorship from Pilot Flying J. He is a consistent performing veteran driver in a series filled with up-and-coming, yet inconsistent young drivers.

9. Riley Herbst – No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota – After two seasons of part-time, preparatory racing in the Xfinity and Gander Truck Series, Herbst is ready to go full-time in 2020. He will be a Rookie of the Year candidate and make a strong bid to claim those honors. Herbst has spent the majority of his time racing in the K&N and ARCA Series the last four seasons, while he only has 17-combined starts in the Xfinity and Gander Truck Series. The lack of seat time in NASCAR's upper divisions is a bit concerning. However, Herbst did show some flashes in his nine Xfinity Series starts last season. The youngster will be guided by veteran crew chief Dave Rogers and two will look to hit the ground running this season. Herbst still has a lot to learn, so inconsistency could be an issue for this driver and team well into 2020 campaign.

10. Daniel Hemric/Jeb Burton/Dale Earnhardt Jr. – No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet – This is the first multi-driver team in our rankings for this season. JRM has signed Daniel Hemric to pilot the team's car for most of the schedule, a total of 21 starts. Youngster Burton will take the wheel for 11 starts, and Earnhardt Jr. will get one start early in the season at Homestead. While there are three drivers for this team, it will mostly be an effort for Hemric. He comes over from the Cup Series last year in the RCR No. 8 Chevrolet. When Hemric last raced in the Xfinity Series he stacked up 16 Top-5 and 23 Top-10 finishes for old boss Richard Childress in 2018. The 28-year-old driver now has well over 100 combined starts in NASCAR's lower divisions. That experience will show in the No. 8 JRM Chevrolet Camaro.

11. Justin Haley – No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet – The youngster had an eventful rookie season in 2019. Haley grabbed four Top-5 and 20 Top-10 finishes en route to a respectable 12th-place finish in the series points. He also made three forays into the Cup Series, grabbing a shocking victory in the summer Daytona race. Haley is a 20-year-old talent and still has a lot of room to grow. He's won in every series that he's raced, so it's just a matter of time before he picks up a victory in the Xfinity Series. 2020 could be the season where this young driver explodes. Kaulig Racing continues to get better with each season and we expect that trend to continue in this campaign. Alex Yontz will return to crew chief for Haley and the two should continue to build on the very strong season they posted together in 2019.

12. Myatt Snider/Anthony Alfredo/Austin Dillon – No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet – This three driver team will consist primarily of Snider and Alfredo's efforts. While at the time of this writing the number of starts has not been announced, it would make sense that Snider gets the majority of the starts. Alfredo signed with the team last December and will likely start about a third of the schedule. Cup Series veteran Dillon will only make a couple starts for this race team. The No. 21 RCR Chevrolet team has a strong recent history and good resources. Snider and Alfredo's lack of experience in Xfinity cars is a bit concerning, but this strong race team should help ease this transition for both. They should get stronger as the season wears on.

13. Ryan Sieg – No. 39 RSS Racing Chevrolet – The Xfinity Series veteran returns for his seventh full season campaign in this division of NASCAR. Sieg has only gotten better with each passing season, and it culminated in last year's career-best effort. Sieg nabbed two Top-5 and 12 Top-10 finishes en route to an 11th-place finish in the final driver standings. He saw his average finish improve dramatically from 19.5 the previous year to 14.6 last season. It signified better qualifying, better racing and much better finishes for this small race team. Just how much more can the No. 39 team grow in 2020? That's the key question. While they lack the speed to challenge for wins, we could see Sieg push the Top 5 and Top 10 totals a bit higher this season.

14. Gray Gaulding – No. 08 SS Green Light Racing Chevrolet – Gaulding revived his "stalled" NASCAR career with a really sound season in 2019. It was his first full season effort in the Xfinity Series, and he did it with SS Green Light Racing. The 21-year-old prospect earned four Top-10 and 17 Top-15 finishes last year in the No. 08 Chevrolet Camaro. The consistency and competitiveness were very impressive. Gaulding finished every race in the 33-event schedule and did not register a single DNF. That consistency, and running at the end of races led to many Top-15 efforts. It's believed that this team will return intact for 2020, and with Patrick Donahue still calling the shots from the pit box. There's definite room to grow for this driver and race team.

15. Jeremy Clements – No. 51 Jeremy Clements Racing Chevrolet – The owner/driver of the No. 51 Chevrolet will return for another season of Xfinity Series action this year. The 34-year-old from South Carolina posted career-best marks last season with his race team. Clements grabbed one Top-5 and four Top-10 finishes and registered a respectable 16.9 average finish across the season. At the conclusion of the 33-race schedule he found himself a respectable 14th overall in the championship driver standings. This is really has been the blue print for much of the last six seasons for this driver and team. They race competitively with limited resources and perform better than half the field each race weekend. Clements should be up for more of the same in 2020.

16. Ray Black Jr. – No. 07 SS Green Light Racing Chevrolet – Black took over the No. 07 Chevrolet of SS Green Light Racing last season and posted a steady campaign for this race team in 2019. He posted eight Top-15 and 22 Top-20 finishes. While Brown was slowed by six DNF's he still posted a respectable 20.5 average finish for the campaign. It was a good first season to grow on for Black and this race team. Black was confirmed to be back in the car last November, so contractually things were worked out pretty quickly at the end of last season. Jason Miller will return at crew chief, and the duo will look to grow on the momentum they started in 2019.

17. Brandon Brown – No. 86 Brandonbilt Motorsports Chevrolet – Last season's rookie campaign was a success for Brown and the No. 86 team. They posted a thrilling Top-10 finish in the summer Daytona race and 10 total Top-15 finishes throughout the season. The reliability and consistency netted a decent 19.7 average finish for this driver and team. The good vibes should continue into 2020. Brown will likely run a similar schedule with most of his starts coming in the team's No. 86 entry, and a few spot starts in the sister No. 68 entry. At 26-years-old Brown is older than most of the other upstart drivers in the Xfinity Series, and that maturity should help expedite his growth as the starts begin to pile up.

18. Jesse Little – No. 4 JD Motorsports Chevrolet – The five-season truck series veteran driver will make the move to the Xfinity Series this season. Little has been signed by JD Motorsports, but it has not been announced at the time of this writing which team he'll be piloting. It's very likely that Little will take over the No. 4 Chevrolet which Ross Chastain and several other drivers piloted last season. The team earned three Top-10 and 10 Top-15 finishes with all that shuffling behind the wheel. It will be good to have some stability this season, but Little's lack of experience with Xfinity cars will be a limiting factor. We should see Paul Clapprood back in the pit box calling the shots and that will help Little make this transition a bit easier.

19. Josh Williams – No. 36 DGM Racing Chevrolet – It's yet to be confirmed, but it's believed that Williams will be back at DGM Racing for his second full season in the Xfinity Series in 2020. The driver/team combo had a surprising 2019 season. Williams grabbed one Top-10 (Talladega) and seven Top-15 finishes throughout last year. For the 26-year-old driver it was the best of his four Xfinity Series campaigns to this point. While there are still some question marks surrounding this team and their plans for this season, there's also a lot of potential. The longtime ARCA Series veteran proved his worth in NASCAR's second division last season and that should be enough to draw some interest and sponsors to this small race team.

20. Stephen Leicht – No. 01 JD Motorsports Chevrolet – Leicht's return to full-season Xfinity Series racing had its ups-and-downs last year. He piloted the No. 01 JDM Camaro to a surprising Top-5 finish at Daytona in the mid-summer, but he also netted seven DNF's along the way. Those disappointments really hampered Leicht's consistency. Still, the veteran driver grabbed nine Top-20 finishes and rounded out the season 18th in the final driver standings. It was a good enough effort to bring Leicht back for 2020. Sponsorship still remains an issue for this race team, and that's a concern heading into the new year. If they can secure enough dollars to race Leicht should give them quality starts on the race track each weekend.

21. Drivers TBD – No. 90 DGM Racing Chevrolet – At the time of this writing DGM Racing hasn't announced formal 2020 plans, but it's believed they will attempt another full-time schedule with their No. 90 Chevy Camaro. The team featured a handful of drivers last season including: Ronnie Bassett Jr., Alex Labbe, Dillon Bassett among others. If they compete in 2020 we should see a similar driver lineup and effort from this race team. The driver rotation had some bright spots along the way last season, like Labbe's sixth-place finish at the Charlotte Roval and Bassett's pair of Top 15s in the two Richmond races. Outside of those the team collected 12 total Top-20 finishes for the campaign. It was one of the better multi-driver efforts in the Xfinity Series last year.

22. Garrett Smithley – No. 0 JD Motorsports Chevrolet – Smithley has been very steady the last two seasons for this Xfinity Series team. The only blip on the radar was a rash of four DNF's in the final six races of last season. Were it not for that bad luck, Smithley would have posted even better numbers. The 27-year-old driver now has over 130-career starts in this division of NASCAR and his talents are being noticed. Smithley made 14 Cup Series starts last year, and the lure of racing at NASCAR's top level is pulling him in that direction. He hasn't been confirmed in the No. 0 Chevrolet at the time of this writing, and various rumors have Smithley possibly moving to Cup full-time for Rick Ware Racing. This is a situation to watch closely in the pre-season. This driver and team present some deep-league value if they go racing together in 2020.

23. Matt Mills – No. 5 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Chevrolet – The 23-year-old driver returns for a second season at B.J. McLeod Motorsports. Mills started 29 of the 33 events last season in the No. 5 Ford. The young driver earned one Top-10 finish (summer Daytona race) and eight Top-20 finishes. The performance netted a 21st-place finish in the driver standings of 2019. It wasn't a bad effort for a driver of such limited experience. Mills will return to an intact team with good sponsorship and the same crew chief as last season. They will look to build on the foundation they laid in the last campaign, and improve through more consistency and less DNF's.

24. B.J. McLeod/Other Drivers – No. 15 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Chevrolet – 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 made 30 starts last season with 22 of those coming in the No. 15 Ford. The veteran driver claimed 11 Top-20 finishes although five of those came in another team's car. So the inconsistency behind the wheel, and unknown drivers are a limiting factor for this race team. The only concrete fact we can hang our hats on is that McLeod will field this car in all 33 events. It's typically running at the end of most races, although not terribly competitively.

25. Vinnie Miller – No. 78 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Chevrolet – Miller will return for his third full-time season of Xfinity Series action in 2020. The young driver made some marginal improvements last year in the No. 78 Chevrolet. Miller improved his average qualifying and finishes positions by over 2.5 spots each and it led to four Top-20 finishes. He would wind up 2019 at 23rd-place in the final driver standings. It was good progress from his 2018 rookie season. Miller will once again have Keith Wolfe calling the shots from the team's war wagon, and that continued driver/crew chief relationship should spur further improvement. Still, this team's limited resources are the biggest factor and really only makes them a threat to overachieve on the superspeedways.

26. Drivers TBD – No. 99 B.J. McLeod Motorsports Toyota – This team ran full-time in 2019 with only one DNQ (Charlotte). They hosted a number of different drivers including: Tommy Joe Martins, Jairo Avila Jr., Stefan Parsons and Cody Ware to name a few. In total, there were 11 different drivers in the No. 99 Toyota last season. That lack of consistency behind the wheel led to some uneven results for the team. The collective nabbed six Top-20 finishes but somehow only managed two DNF's. It was a minimally competitive team despite the revolving door at the driver's side window. We should see a similar deployment in 2020 and a number of different faces behind the wheel.

27. David Starr – Jimmy Means Racing – No. 52 Chevrolet – The 22-year NASCAR veteran is confirmed to be returning to Jimmy Means Racing. The search for sponsors continues for this small, underfunded operation, but they plan to race full-time again in 2020. The 52-year-old veteran from Texas raced to just five Top-20 finishes last season vs. nine DNF's. The average finish came in around a lofty 26.0 for the season. Those are nearly identical numbers to what Starr posted in 2018 in this same car. The trend line is set and it remains pretty flat. There's only so much this veteran driver can do with this small race team and limited resources.

28. C.J. McLaughlin/Other Drivers – No. 93 RSS Racing Chevrolet – This second RSS team was mostly a start-and-park operation in 2019. With a number of different drivers, the team DNF'd 16 times last season in the 33-race schedule. Although the car was much more competitive in the latter half of the year with only four DNF's over the final 13 events. That's an indicator that things are trending more competitively. McLaughlin made just four starts in the No. 93 Chevrolet and that will increase to 20 starts this season. The 27-year-old driver is short on experience and needs as much seat time as he can get this season. There will be struggles aplenty for this driver and team but the future is getting brighter with recent developments.

29. Tommy Joe Martins – No. 44 Martins Motorsports Chevrolet – The veteran driver is going out on his own in 2020. Martins has raced part-time the past couple seasons with both B.J. McLeod Motorsports and Motorsports Business Management. So this is a completely new team this season in an owner/driver arrangement for Martins. Startup teams face a lot of challenges and so will Martins' effort. The 33-year-old veteran does have 57 Xfinity Series starts to his credit, and that does help. However, the administration and funding issues of small race team can be crushing and a big distraction to the driving side of the business.

30. Timmy Hill – No. 66 Motorsports Business Management Toyota – Hill raced this car along with a handful of other drivers last season. He would make 16 starts of the 31 that the No. 66 MBM Toyota made in 2019. It was an uneven campaign that was plagued by 13 DNF's throughout the year. The good news is that Hill got the best results out of this team of all the drivers behind the wheel. He earned six Top-20 finishes in those 16 starts and give this inconsistent race team a modicum of competitive performance. Hill could see some increased seat time in this car with Tommy Joe Martins not returning. That should see a slight bump in performance for Hill.

31. Chad Finchum – No. 61 Motorsports Business Management Toyota – The 25-year-old Tennessean will compete full-time in one of the MBM Toyotas this season. At the time of this writing it hasn't been announced which car number, but it's assumed to be the No. 61 entry. MBM will run two cars full-time this season, and this will be one of those entries. Finchum labored through last season racing in this team's multiple cars. He posted just three Top-20 finishes vs. a whopping 18 DNF's. It's difficult to tell if the situation will improve much in 2020. With sponsorship and funding question marks still looming, Finchum could be in for another rough campaign of non-competitive racing.

32. Brad Keselowski/Ryan Blaney/Joey Logano – No. 12 Penske Racing Ford – This team is easily the strongest part-time team in Xfinity Series competition. Penske only fields this car about eight times a season but it always features a star-studded Cup Series driver lineup. In 2019 they combined for three pole positions, and five Top-5 finishes in their eight starts to go along with 139 combined laps led. The No. 12 Penske Racing Ford usually snares a win or two in this part-time effort, although they did not last season. They typically run the intermediate and larger ovals, although they did race two short tracks (Loudon and Bristol) last year. This team and talented driver lineup are not suited for season-long fantasy leagues, but they're an invaluable commodity in weekly lineup leagues and DFS.

33. AJ Allmendinger – No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet – Matt Kaulig has announced that Allmendinger will pilot the team's part-time car in the season-opener at Daytona. It's also likely that the veteran driver will get a handful of starts with this team throughout the year. Last season he made five starts with Kaulig Racing and hauled in a big victory at the Charlotte Roval and a Top-5 finish at the Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course. As always, Allmendinger is a very talented and dangerous road course performer in stock cars. That success and appeal will likely earn him some more road course efforts with this team in 2020.

34. Andy Seuss – No. 02 Our Motorsports Chevrolet – This team is new for 2020. Our Motorsports is an established Whelen Modified and ARCA Series team, and they will be expanding into the Xfinity Series this season. They have tabbed Seuss to be the team's pilot for the full schedule. He has been racing with the team the last two years in the lower divisions of NASCAR and will be looking forward to his rookie campaign in the Xfinity Series. Seuss is 32-years-old, so he's older than your average rookie. Still, he lacks the crucial seat time in this division of NASCAR and will be racing with a startup team making their maiden voyage in this challenging racing series.

35. Mike Harmon/Other Drivers – No. 74 Mike Harmon Racing Chevrolet – Harmon typically starts about half the races in his own No. 74 Chevrolet. The team as a whole typically races most, if not all, of the schedule with multiple drivers filling the gaps. Sponsorship is what drives this multi-driver approach and it works to keep Harmon's machine on the track all year long. The team only combined for two Top-20 finishes vs. 11 DNF's last season, so it's not a start-and-park effort. However, the level of competitive racing is quite low. Harmon and his co-pilots are often seen bring this car home in about the 28th – 30th-place slot each week.

36. Jeff Green/J.J. Yeley/Other Drivers – No. 38 RSS Racing Chevrolet – RSS Racing is planning to field three teams in 2020, but this one could be the "have not" of the group. The No. 38 Chevrolet was purely a start-and-park team last season with mostly Yeley and Green behind the wheel. This season could shape up to be more of the same. The team made 31 starts last year with two DNQ's. In those 31 starts the team did not finish 29 times and only was running at the end of both Daytona races. Unless sponsorship improves this team is likely facing another start-and-park effort this season.

37. Drivers TBD – No. 13 Motorsports Business Management Toyota – MBM fielded this car for the entire schedule in 2019, but it was a start-and-park effort among multiple drivers. The team has stated that they will run two full-time teams in 2020 with a third car as an occasional starter. We would suspect that the part-time car will be this No. 13 entry. Outside of Timmy Hill and Chad Finchum the car featured: Stan Mullis, John Jackson, Joe Nemechek and Carl Long among others. This team's limited funding, resources and part-time schedule give them no true fantasy racing value in any league no matter the format.