JR Motorsports has announced one of the drivers who will be stepping into Connor Zilisch's No. 88 Chevrolet in 2026.
Teenager Zilisch is the favorite for the NASCAR Xfinity Series title this year with just one playoff eliminator to go before the Championship 4 race in Phoenix, and will be heading off to the Cup Series with Trackhouse Racing next year.
While Zilisch will come back and run part-time in the newly renamed O'Reilly Auto Parts Series next year, he'll be sharing the No. 1 JR Motorsports car with Carson Kvapil.
Instead, JRM announced this week that popular Truck Series driver Rajah Caruth will join the No. 88 team part-time as of 2026.
Caruth fighting for Truck title
Caruth is currently fighting for a place in the Truck Series Championship 4 for Spire Motorsports, sitting second in the playoff standings at +14 to the cut line, behind only win-and-in qualified Corey Heim with just this Sunday's elimination race to go.
Some fans noticed that Spire Cup Series driver Carson Hocevar had revealed some elements of the move which haven't yet been officially announced – specifically, Caruth's exit from Spire – posting online: "Enjoy it over there @rajahcaruth_! Was great having you here in the building. Go win a championship before you head to the next chapter tho!"
The 23-year-old Atlanta native admitted after last weekend's race at Talladega that he was annoyed not to have locked himself into the final four with a win, telling the media: "I would say pretty frustrated there with how it ended, for sure.
"I didn't want to split Corey, it's just I got kind of popped at the wrong time, I felt like. Still a great points day, thank you to [Rick and Linda Hendrick], everybody at Spire, Chevrolet, GM, for all that they do, not just for [me], but for all of our teammates. So, frustrated with the end, but still a great points day."
