Ford's presence in NASCAR's O'Reilly Auto Parts Series in 2026 will be bolstered by a new entry, with the announcement that Hettinger Racing will compete full-time in the series in 2026. 

Second-generation racer Chris Hettinger is the owner and will field the No. 5 Ford Mustang Dark Horse and receive technical support from Ford Racing. Roush Yates Engines will serve as the team’s engine supplier. 

Driver and partnership plans for 2026 will be announced ahead of the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series open test — set for Jan. 27-28 at Rockingham.

“This is about putting our race team in the right place at the right time,” Hettinger said. “The NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series has incredible momentum. It features great racing and the series gets significant exposure thanks to coverage from The CW. Combining that platform with the support of Ford Racing and Roush Yates Engines gives us the opportunity to grow our program into one that competes at a national level.”

Hettinger raced in Late Models and open-wheel Midgets before becoming a team owner. The native of Dryden, Michigan, has been a fixture in Late Models, fielding multiple entries on the zMAX CARS Tour for up-and-coming racers.

After years of justifiable grumbling from fans about the playoff system as it has existed in recent years, with multiple resets and cutoff rounds, and cries that the champions crowned in recent years weren’t truly deserving due to the one-race finale, change has come to NASCAR in a big way.

Starting with the 2026 season set to launch in a few weeks, the sport is returning to its (recent) past. No, we’re not getting a full season championship with no points resets, like we had from 1975 through 2003, but we got as close we were ever going to get — a return to a (slightly altered) version of the 10-race Chase that launched back in 2004 (and similar setups in the O’Reilly and Truck series as well).

In the Cup Series, 16 drivers will qualify for a 10-race Chase based on the points scored during the 26-race regular season. For the O’Reilly series, 12 drivers will qualify for a 9-race Chase; and in Trucks, 10 drivers will qualify for a 7-race Chase.

Each series points leader will start the Chase with a 25-point lead over 2nd place, and 35 points more than the 3rd place driver; while the final Chase driver in Cup will be 100 points back. From that point, it’s a battle between the 16 drivers with no further resets. Most points at the end wins.

Read on for my thoughts on the 6 biggest upsides of this new era for NASCAR, which alongside the recent 23XI/Front Row court settlement brings much-needed healing to the sport after a tumultuous 2025.

In addition to revealing the long-awaited Cup series schedule, NASCAR also recently unveiled its schedules for the 2026 calendar year in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly known as Xfinity Series), and Craftsman Truck Series. Here are my takes on the best and worst changes made in those schedules. 

Xfinity schedule changes

GOOD:

IN THE NAVY NOW: All three series will be racing at Naval Base Coronado in San Diego in June, which should be an amazing location for the race. Assuming the track design allows for competitive racing, this is an event that should be a home run all weekend, and it’s nice to see NASCAR introducing these new locations instead of the copy/paste schedules we had for so many years. Whether it’s a one-year deal or multiple years, I am circling this on the schedule for all three series.

MORE DARLINGTON, PLEASE: Like most racing fans with half a lick of sense, I love to watch NASCAR racing at Darlington. The Lady in Black delivers every time in my book, so adding a second O’Reilly race at Darlington in 2026 is a no-brainer to me. It's an old-school track that is one of few I would argue deserves two dates.