Back in 2013, NASCAR audiences felt like they had seen the last of James Finch and his legacy in the NASCAR Cup Series. The Phoenix Racing would then be sold to become HScott Motorsports in 2014. However, more than a decade later, his successor is going to try and attempt to revive his father’s forgotten NASCAR pursuit.

Jake Finch to start five races for JR Motorsports

As you might’ve guessed, Jake Finch is the same driver who drove the No. 17 car for Hendrick Motorsports last year at Dover in the O’Reilly Series. He is the son of former Cup Series owner James Finch. This year, he is going to get a chance to retry his luck in the NASCAR O’Reilly Series with Dale Earnhardt Jr. as his mentor.

This comes as a surprising announcement, as JRM didn’t show any upcoming plans of making a new signing in the O’Reilly Series. Finch is going to start five races for the team during the 2026 season behind the wheel of the No. 9 Chevy. It is the same car that Shane van Gisbergen drove to victory at COTA a few weeks ago. For this season, Finch is going to drive the car at Atlanta, Darlington, Bristol, Charlotte, and Talladega starting in July.

As a racer, Finch has been participating in the ARCA Menards Series, making multiple appearances with Venturini Motorsports and his father’s team, Phoenix Racing. He is also the winner of the 2024 ARCA Menards Series race at Talladega for Venturini Motorsports and the 2023 ARCA Menards East race at Dover for Venturini. 

While doing so, Finch would go on to make history in 2024. He was able to lead every lap of the race in Talladega en route to victory. With that achievement, he became the only driver in the history of the series to achieve that milestone. As of 2026, Finch has yet to participate in any NASCAR or other nationwide racing series full-time.

But he is not the only new signing that Dale Earnhardt Jr. has brought in to his team.

JR Motorsports gives Martinsville veteran his O’Reilly debut

Before Jake Finch takes over the wheel of the No. 9, Lee Pulliam is going to drive the car in hopes of gaining glory at the Martinsville Speedway. Pulliam is a well-known racer at the track and has won the prestigious ValleyStar Credit Union 300 twice. Not only that, but he is also a veteran Late Model racer with a lot of success in the series.

He is more than excited to race the No. 9 at a track that has been his best. “To drive that car out on the track… I mean, I get goosebumps right now just thinking about it,” Pulliam said when asked about his feelings. “Literally. In my opinion, Earnhardt is the biggest name in the sport, and you don’t take it for granted. It is absolutely an honor to do it.”

He is no stranger to NASCAR, however. As an owner, Pulliam has already interacted with many JRM drivers, including the likes of Sammy Smith, NASCAR Cup Series drivers Alex Bowman and Ross Chastain, and former JRM drivers Michael Annett, Miguel Paludo, and Ryan Truex. 

The No. 9 Chevy of JR Motorsports is looking like a prime laboratory for experimenting with upcoming drivers and unknown talents. What comes out of these experiments will only reveal itself on race day when these drivers take the wheel of the car.