A day after it was revealed that Jesse Love will run the NASCAR Cup Series race for Richard Childress Racing at Talladega Superspeedway, RCR announced Feb. 20 he’ll make his 2026 debut even sooner.
Love will pilot the part-time No. 33 at Circuit of the Americas with sponsorship from C4 Energy.
The release specifies it’s one of “several” Cup races for Love this year, though the remainder of his schedule past COTA and Talladega is not known.
“C4 Energy has been with me throughout many major moments in my career and I’m excited for them to be showcased on the No. 33 Chevrolet when I make my 2026 Cup Series debut next weekend at Circuit of the Americas,” Love said in a team release. “C4 Energy powers me on race days, prep days and beyond so it’s only fitting that they come along with me for my first NASCAR Cup Series start of 2026.
“Racing in the Cup Series is my goal and I’m ready to capitalize on these opportunities this season thanks to the strong team behind me at RCR including Richard Childress, Mike Verlander, Danny Lawrence and all the hard-working men and women at the race shop, ECR and CT Spring in Welcome, N.C.”
“Jesse Love is a talented racer who has consistently proven himself with strong on-track performance and an off-track demeanor that appeals to fans and partners,” RCR President Mike Verlander added. “We’re proud of his development over the past few years and look forward to helping him compete at the highest levels of our sport alongside C4 Ultimate Energy.”
Love made five Cup starts in 2025 between RCR and Beard Motorsports, scoring a best finish of 24th at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He’s also the defending NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion and finished ninth in the season opener last weekend.
Kevin Rutherford is the executive editor of Frontstretch, a position he gained in 2025 after being the managing editor since 2015, and serving on the editing staff since 2013.
At his day job, he's a journalist covering music and rock charts at Billboard. He lives in New York City, but his heart is in Ohio -- you know, like that Hawthorne Heights song.