For the sixth time during the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season and the second weekend in a row, Richard Childress Racing added a third car to their lineup for the regular season finale at Daytona International Speedway this past weekend, and for the third time this year, it was Xfinity Series driver Austin Hill behind the wheel of the No. 33 Chevrolet.
Hill, who delivered the No. 33 car its best finish since 2011 (ninth) on the streets of Chicago in early July, finished the Daytona race in 30th, just one week after teammate Jesse Love drove it to a 33rd place finish at Richmond Raceway.
This weekend, however, the team will not be entering the No. 33 Chevrolet at Darlington Raceway.
Richard Childress Racing back to two cars at Darlington
The plan is still for the team to run the No. 33 car two more times this season, both times for Hill. Hill is set to return for the round of 16 finale at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday, September 13. The team entered the No. 33 car at Bristol back in April for Love, who finished in 31st place.
The final planned start of the year for the No. 33 Chevrolet is scheduled to come at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday, October 19.
As for this weekend, there are two part-time non-chartered (open) cars on the entry list for the 367-lap Cook Out Southern 500 around the four-turn, 1.366-mile (2.198-kilometer) egg-shaped Darlington, South Carolina oval, so both are locked into the crown jewel race.
Those cars are the No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet, which is set to be driven by Derek Kraus for the second time this year, and the No. 66 Garage 66 (MBM Motorsports) Ford, which is set to be driven by Josh Bilicki for the team-leading sixth time this year.
Darlington Raceway is scheduled to host the Cook Out Southern 500 this Sunday, August 31, and USA Network is set to provide live coverage starting at 6:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series playoff opener!