When Haas Factory Team swapped manufacturers from Ford to Chevrolet over the offseason, both in the NASCAR Cup Series and the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series, and the Haas Factory Team-affiliated RSS Racing O'Reilly Series team followed suit, Ford lost four of its five full-time O'Reilly Series entries for 2026.
They did pick up another one in the form of the No. 5 Hettinger Racing Ford, after the team made the jump up to the O'Reilly Series after running just a single ARCA Menards Series race in 2024 and a combined three Craftsman Truck Series races across 2024 and 2025.
But the lone remaining full-time Ford entry from a year ago was the No. 25 AM Racing Ford, in which Nick Sanchez was initially set to replace Harrison Burton after shockingly losing what was supposed to continue to be his ride in the No. 48 Big Machine Racing Chevrolet.
Now it's a good thing Ford picked up Hettinger Racing, because AM Racing surprisingly withdrew from the entry list at Rockingham Speedway two weeks ago, didn't show up at Bristol Motor Speedway this past weekend, and is again absent from the entry list at Kansas Speedway.
All things considered, there is very little known about the team's ongoing absence, and there is no timetable for a return.
Ford down to one NASCAR O'Reilly Series car, no full-time drivers
Through seven races this year, Sanchez, who had been Ford's only full-time driver in the O'Reilly Series, had posted a top finish of third place at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway), although that was his only top 15 result.
The team also fielded the No. 52 Chevrolet for Daniel Dye, before Dye was suspended by NASCAR and ultimately left his full-time Truck Series ride with Kaulig Racing.
Ford hasn't even run any part-time teams or entries this season at NASCAR's second highest level, adding to the ongoing narrative that they are lacking a true driver pipeline at a time when potential rising stars and development drivers could be crucial to have in their back pocket.
On this weekend's Kansas entry list, there are 37 cars. Of those 37 cars, 30 are Chevrolets, six are Toyotas, and just one is a Ford.
Luke Baldwin is set to make his second start of the year in the No. 5 Ford this weekend, after J.J. Yeley drove it at Rockingham and Bristol. Yeley leads all drivers with three starts in the car this year, while Chandler Smith and rookie Luke Fenhaus have each made two. Tyler Gonzalez has made one.
But as of now, the No. 5 car does not have any confirmed drivers beyond this weekend, and given the fact that we've already seen a new team in Barrett-Cope Racing lose their full-time status (with, like AM Racing, no clear return in sight), fans can only keep their fingers crossed that the sport doesn't eventually end up in a spot where there are zero Blue Ovals left competing in the O'Reilly Series.
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