NASCAR 101: Who Didn’t Return to NASCAR in 2025?

It’s not a huge list, but this year’s rundown of the drivers who didn’t return to NASCAR’s national series is still quite a doozy.

That’s because it includes a multi-time Most Popular Driver in the NASCAR Cup Series, one whose name has been synonymous with the sport for practically half a century.

Not just that — a driver with a 20-plus-year streak of starts across the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series didn’t come back, nor did a crop of open-wheel veterans who had looked to make inroads in stock-car racing in recent years.

For the 11th year of this feature (see below to click through past editions), here’s who didn’t make it back to any of NASCAR’s national series in 2025 after making at least one appearance in 2024.

2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015

Marco Andretti: After a few years of dabbling in stock cars, running a handful of events in the Xfinity and Truck series from 2022 to 2024, Marco Andretti went back to his usual Indianapolis 500-or-bust schedule for the NTT IndyCar Series in 2025. Well, formerly usual; earlier this week, he announced his retirement from racing.

Stanton Barrett: A NASCAR season without Stanton Barrett hasn’t been impossible lately — see 2021 — but it is somewhat of an irregularity. The stuntman’s film and TV credits, however, continued to accumulate.

Dexter Bean: 2025 snaps a streak of Dexter Bean appearances — mostly in Xfinity — that dated back a decade to 2015. It’s unclear if he did any racing in 2025 outside of the NASCAR ranks, though Bean has a longstanding relationship with DGM Racing as owner Mario Gosselin‘s brother-in-law.

Jerry Bohlman: Following two straight seasons competing part time in the Truck Series, Jerry Bohlman raced locally in Florida in 2025.

Danny Bohn: The season began with Danny Bohn looking for sponsorship to run the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, which would have been his first Cup appearance. Instead, he ended up not running any national events in 2025, instead focusing on series like the SMART Modified Tour, in which he won multiple times.

Clint Bowyer: Ten-time Cup winner Clint Bowyer made a surprise return to the racetrack in 2024 with a one-off Truck start with Spire Motorsports. He did not return this year but continued his role as an analyst for FOX Sports’ NASCAR coverage.

Jade Buford: A five-year run of appearances in the national series concluded in 2025 for Jade Buford, formerly a full-time Xfinity driver for Big Machine Racing. Buford has continued to race cars, posting many videos of him competing at Flatrock Motorclub.

Jennifer Jo Cobb: Jennifer Jo Cobb had been at the track at least once every year since 2004, a 20-plus-year streak that featured 234 starts in the Truck Series and 34 in Xfinity. She still made it to the track a handful of times this season, posting a photo from Chicago during the street course race weekend and again from Kansas Speedway.

Conor Daly: From 2020 to 2024 (plus in a one-off Xfinity start in 2018), Conor Daly dabbled in stock-car racing alongside his continued presence in IndyCar. This year, he was back full time in IndyCar while driving for Juncos Hollinger Racing; his NASCAR appearances concurrently fell by the wayside.

Gus Dean: Gus Dean has only been running NASCAR national series races since 2019, but his time in the ARCA Menards Series went back even further: 70 races since 2016, with 2021 his only start-less season. He appeared in neither in 2025, instead focusing on mud truck racing in the Southern Mud Outlaws.

Hailie Deegan: Since departing AM Racing midway through the 2024 Xfinity season, Hailie Deegan hasn’t been back in NASCAR. This year, she could be found in Indy NXT, finishing 14th in points with a best finish of 11th.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: The end of an era: Not only did Dale Earnhardt Jr. not race a single NASCAR event in 2025, it’s also the first time since 1974 that someone named Dale Earnhardt didn’t run a national series race. Earnhardt Jr. didn’t compete in what’s been a one- or two-race Xfinity schedule dating back to 2018, though he’s remained part of the sport as owner of JR Motorsports and as a broadcaster for Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports.

RC Enerson: Jack-of-all-trades racer RC Enerson didn’t make it into a NASCAR vehicle in 2025, but he’s remained the chief instructor at the Lucas Oil School of Racing.

Patrick Gallagher: Patrick Gallagher continued his foray into the WeatherTech Sports Car Championship in 2025, returning to Turner Motorsport’s No. 96 in the GTD class. His best finish? Fourth, three times.

Joe Graf Jr.: After running at least three Xfinity races every year since 2019, Joe Graf Jr. doesn’t seem to have made it to the track as a driver in 2025.

Connor Hall: 2025 was a big year for Connor Hall, who finished runner-up in the CARS Tour’s late model stock car division, winning twice with JRM. He’s also competed in the final two ARCA Menards Series West races of the season for Sigma Performance Services.

Jack Hawksworth: Like Gallagher, Jack Hawksworth was a presence in WeatherTech’s GTD class in 2025, running all races for Vasser Sullivan Racing in the No. 12. He earned three runner-up finishes.

Colby Howard: A streak in the national series dating back to 2019 concluded for Colby Howard, who instead competed — and won — in late models across the country, including via the ASA Southern Super Series for Anthony Campi Racing.

Ryan Huff: Ryan Huff entered three ARCA races in 2025, failing to qualify at Daytona International Speedway and making the field at Talladega Superspeedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway for his own team, earning a best result of 15th at the latter.

Trey Hutchens: Since 2019, Trey Hutchens had brought a family-owned No. 14 to the track at least three times a season (and as many as six times in 2021) in the Truck Series. He failed to qualify at Richmond Raceway in 2024 and has not returned since. Hutchens competed locally in 2025, including at Bowman Gray.

Ed Jones: It’s not clear if Ed Jones did any racing in 2025 — somewhat of a surprise, since prior to his five-race Xfinity schedule in 2024 for Sam Hunt Racing, the Brit had been a mainstay across NASCAR, IMSA, IndyCar and European racing circuits since 2011.

Kyle Keller: Kyle Keller has competed full time in ARCA West this season for Jan’s Racing Team, entering this weekend’s finale second in points. In July, he won his first race, triumphing at Tri-City Raceway.

Kamui Kobayashi: One of the many international drivers who tried their hand at Cup racing this decade, Kamui Kobayashi did not return to 23XI Racing for another one-off start in 2025. He remained busy, though, competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s hypercar division, Super Formula, the 24 Hours of LeMans, 24 Hours of Daytona and more.

Daniil Kvyat: Automobili Lamborghini Squadra Corse fielded cars in WeatherTech’s GTP class part time in 2025, with Daniil Kvyat a driver in four of those events. His best finish of fourth came in the season finale at Road Atlanta.

Landen Lewis: His one-year break from NASCAR is already nearly over; 2025 CARS Tour champion Landen Lewis has already signed to Niece Motorsports for a part-time Truck run for 2026.

Dylan Lupton: Dylan Lupton had made at least one national series start every year since 2015 across the Cup, Xfinity and Truck series. Not so in 2025; in fact, it’s not clear if he did any racing this year.

Tommy Joe Martins: Following a one-off Xfinity start at Talladega last year, his first since 2022, Tommy Joe Martins focused solely on his main job in 2025: co-owner of Xfinity’s Alpha Prime Racing.

Kenko Miura: Earlier this year, Kenko Miura was indicated as one of the drivers for Akinori Performance, Akinori Ogata‘s fledgling Truck team. That didn’t pan out (Ogata’s No. 63 did make it to the track twice with the owner behind the wheel, though), but Miura continued competing in the NASCAR Euro Series.

Brett Moffitt: 2018 Truck champion Brett Moffitt made no national series appearances in 2025, concluding a streak that began in 2012. Instead, he’s gone sprint car racing this season.

Thad Moffitt: He didn’t make it to the national series in 2025, but Thad Moffitt was an on-again, off-again presence in ARCA throughout the season for Nitro Motorsports, originally set to compete full time before funding set him back to par time. He’ll be running Phoenix this weekend, looking to better his second-place finish at Talladega in the spring.

Justin Mondeik: Though he didn’t make a NASCAR start this year, Justin Mondeik was active across multiple racing series in 2025, driving a No. 44 late model.

Juan Pablo Montoya: The longtime Cup competitor Juan Pablo Montoya was a throwback addition to the grid at Watkins Glen International last season for 23XI. This year, he wasn’t on the track — his social media bio now calls himself a “former racecar driver” — but he’s still around the sport via 20-year-old son Sebastian, who is currently 10th in Formula 2 points.

Bubba Pollard: No cup of coffee in NASCAR’s national series this year for Bubba Pollard. Still plenty of wins across the country’s late model divisions in his No. 26, though.

Chase Purdy: Chase Purdy departed Spire’s Truck team at the end of 2024 and added “(former)” next to NASCAR driver in his Instagram bio. Sure enough: no racing for the 25-year-old in 2025 after four full-time Truck seasons.

David Ragan: Two-time Cup winner David Ragan was covered in this column at the end of 2023 after making no national series starts for the first time in nearly 20 years. He promptly returned with RFK Racing for a one-off Daytona 500 start last year but went back to inactivity in 2025 (though he did test an electric street vehicle for Ford ahead of the Chicago race).

Ryan Reed: No racing for Ryan Reed in 2025, but he did make it to the track at Darlington Raceway for NASCAR’s annual throwback weekend as a guest of Joey Gase Motorsports and driver Greg Van Alst, who ran a Reed-flavored paint scheme on its No. 35.

Codie Rohrbaugh: Codie Rohrbaugh‘s CR7 Motorsports has continued to be a formidable presence in the Truck Series, with Grant Enfinger scoring seven top fives and 14 top 10s entering this weekend’s finale. Rohrbaugh himself, however, did not get behind the wheel.

Cory Roper: Even though he’s featured in the NASCAR 25 video game, neither Cory Roper nor his family-owned No. 04 made it to the track in the Truck Series this year, snapping a six-year streak of appearances.

Boris Said: Boris Said‘s 28th-place finish for Hendrick Motorsports at the Watkins Glen Xfinity race last year is, for now, his last in NASCAR. He’s joined his son, Boris Said Jr., in Trans Am competition for Nitro Motorsports this year.

Mike Skeen: Mike Skeen was once again a presence in IMSA, competing part time in the GTD class for both Triarsi Competizone and Conquest Racing.

Ryan Vargas: After making his NASCAR national debut in 2019, Ryan Vargas had appeared in Xfinity or Trucks every year since. He didn’t make it back in 2025, but Vargas was still all over NASCAR-owned or -sanctioned racing this year, from ARCA to Euro to the NASCAR Canada Series. He’s even gotten into Monster Jam more recently.

Tim Viens: ARCA team Rise Motorsports welcomed Tim Viens to its No. 31 for the first two races of the 2025 season. He earned a best finish of 19th at Daytona.

Memphis Villarreal: Memphis Villarreal raced locally across the South intermittently in 2025, following a 2024 season that saw him work as both driver and mechanic for Young’s Motorsports in the Truck Series.

Kyle Weatherman: Not only had Kyle Weatherman been in NASCAR’s national series — mostly Xfinity — every year since 2017, he’d also been a common sight in the sport, running upward of 23 Xfinity races every year since 2020. So his shift to zero starts in 2025 was a bit jarring. He’s currently the owner of Charlotte-based SCG Glass.

Armani Williams: After debuting in the Xfinity Series in 2024 following multiple part-time Truck seasons, Armani Williams does not seem to have raced professionally in 2025.