Myatt Snider was spending the NASCAR Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) pit spotting for Fox Sports pit reporter Jamie Little when he got the abrupt call from Hendrick Motorsports to replace an ill Alex Bowman behind the wheel of the No. 48 Chevrolet in the middle of the race's third and final stage.
Snider entered the race five laps down and brought the car home in 36th place, marking his first ever Cup Series appearance. Bowman was later diagnosed with vertigo, and Anthony Alfredo filled in for him at Phoenix Raceway. Justin Allgaier is set to fill in for him this weekend at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Also at Las Vegas, Snider is set for his first actual start of the 2026 season, although it won't happen in the Cup Series.
Myatt Snider set for first start of 2026
The 31-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native, who made four appearances at year ago with DGM Racing with Jesse Iwuji Motorsports behind the wheel of the No. 91 Chevrolet in the Xfinity Series (O'Reilly Auto Parts Series), is set to make his first O'Reilly Series start with Barrett-Cope Racing behind the wheel of the No. 30 Chevrolet this weekend.
Snider is set to become the entry's fifth different driver in five starts so far this season. Carson Ware drove it at Daytona International Speedway, Cody Ware drove it at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway), Baltazar Leguizamon drove it at COTA, and Austin J. Hill (not the other Austin Hill) drove it at Phoenix.
Carson Ware's 19th place finish is the car's best result so far in 2026.
Aside from the upcoming races at Martinsville Speedway and Watkins Glen International, in which Leguizamon is set to return, the No. 30 car does not yet have any confirmed drivers for the rest of the season.
The 2026 season is set to mark Snider's seventh consecutive season with at least one O'Reilly Series start, and it's set to mark his 11th consecutive season with at least one NASCAR national series start, as he also made select Truck Series appearances from 2016 to 2019, plus 2021.
The CW Network is set to provide live coverage of the LiUNA! from Las Vegas Motor Speedway starting at 5:30 p.m. ET this Saturday, March 14. Begin a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss it!