If everything had gone as planned at the start of 2025, Josh Williams would be behind the wheel of the No. 11 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet for this Saturday's NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Watkins Glen International.
Alas, just past the halfway point of his second season with Matt Kaulig's team, Williams was cut, leaving the team with a vacancy in one of their three full-time entries at NASCAR's second-highest level.
The team opted to go with three different drivers to replace Williams in the first three races following his departure, and all three compete full-time for Spire Motorsports in the Cup Series.
The first race after Williams' departure took place last weekend at Iowa Speedway, when Carson Hocevar filled in and drove the No. 11 car to a sixth place finish, matching Williams' best finish of the year from the May race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
This weekend at Watkins Glen International, it is Michael McDowell who has been given the nod to drive the No. 11 car.
McDowell hasn't competed in the Xfinity Series since 2016.
In his 94th Xfinity Series start across nine seasons, and his first since 2014 at the time, McDowell, known for his road course racing background, drove the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet to victory lane at Road America, and he hadn't returned to the series since that August 2016 race.
But if the 2021 Daytona 500 winner, whose second career Cup Series win also came in a road course race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway back in 2023, is to have a winning send-off at the Xfinity level, it won't have been that 2016 start, because after nine years away, he is back this weekend.
Beyond this weekend, McDowell does not have any more Xfinity Series starts lined up this season; Cup Series drivers are not allowed to run Xfinity Series playoff races, and there are just three races remaining on the regular season schedule following this weekend.
The Xfinity Series has off next weekend while the Cup Series and Truck Series are set to head to Richmond Raceway, but the following weekend, it's Justin Haley, yet another Spire Motorsports Cup driver, who is set to pilot the No. 11 Chevrolet for Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
Haley spent five full seasons competing for Kaulig Racing, first in the Xfinity Series (2019 to 2021) and then in the Cup Series (2022 and 2023) before leaving for Rick Ware Racing. He was effectively traded from Rick Ware Racing back to Chevrolet and landed in the Spire Motorsports seat previously occupied by Corey LaJoie before the 2024 campaign ended.
Will Brown, who drove for Kaulig Racing's Cup program at the Chicago Street Course in July, is then set to make his Xfinity Series debut for the team the following weekend at Portland International Raceway.
There are no confirmed drivers for the No. 11 car beyond Brown in the regular season's penultimate race at Portland.
Tune in to the CW Network at 3:00 p.m. ET this Saturday, August 9 for the live broadcast of the Mission 200 at The Glen from Watkins Glen International. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss any of the action!