NY Racing Team have made five appearances so far in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, all with J.J. Yeley behind the wheel of the No. 44 Chevrolet. He has made four starts, as he failed to qualify for the season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.
Yeley made his most recent start in the late April race at Talladega Superspeedway, and he finished in a season-best 32nd place. NY Racing Team have not been back since, but they are set to return for this Sunday night's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
However, they will not compete with Yeley, whose career-high Cup Series finish of second place came in the 2007 Coca-Cola 600 with Joe Gibbs Racing, behind the wheel of the No. 44 Chevrolet. Yeley was knocked out of last year's Coca-Cola 600 early with a steering issue.
NY Racing Team changing drivers, first time in 2025
Instead, Derek Kraus, who made the first six starts of his Cup Series career for Kaulig Racing last year, is set to drive the No. 44 Chevrolet in this 400-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Concord, North Carolina oval.
The 23-year-old Stratford, Wisconsin native, who remains at simulator driver for Matt Kaulig's team, wrapped up the 2024 season in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway, and he did so with a career-high finish of 25th place.
Notably, the No. 44 Chevrolet is one of four non-chartered (open) cars on the entry list this weekend. With Cup Series races capped at 40 cars, all open cars are locked into the race.
NY Racing Team's plans for the 2025 season beyond this weekend's crown jewel race have been partially confirmed. Yeley is currently set to compete in next weekend's race at Nashville Superspeedway as well as November's season finale at Phoenix, but nothing between those two races has been solidified for the No. 44 car.
Based on their schedule last year, they can probably be expected to compete in several other races. Last year, Yeley made nine appearances in the No. 44 Chevrolet, including six after the Coca-Cola 600, while Joey Gase made one.
The Coca-Cola 600 is set to be shown live from Charlotte Motor Speedway on Amazon Prime Video beginning a 6:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, May 25.