Dale Earnhardt Jr. broaches the 23XI issue with Riley Herbst, Corey Heim

Corey Heim feels destined to be the future of Toyota in the NASCAR Cup Series. Dale Earnhardt Jr. recognizes that, but there doesn’t seem to be a path to a ride at the highest level in the sport for the 22-year old at the moment.

If Heim is going to hop into a seat of a full-time Toyota in 2026, he’s going to have to push someone out. As Earnhardt Jr. evaluates the situation, the name he’s circling at the moment is Riley Herbst, who’s driving the third car at 23XI Racing. He could be the odd one out in the Cup Series, it seems.

“The opinion is that there is a path there. The opinion, I think, in the Toyota camp, is very, very high on him,” Earnhardt Jr. stated, regarding Heim’s future, via the Dale Jr. Download. “This truck thing is just a placeholder, a stop-gap, an opportunity for him to gain knowledge, race, gain race-craft. I don’t think his result this past weekend, good or bad, affects his future in any way. I think it’s there’s already motion in play, right? I can’t say what I think that is.

“Is he going to push Riley [Herbst] out? What’s going to happen there? … Corey ain’t going to sit around forever. … I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s in Riley’s car next year.”

Alas, the 26-year old hasn’t had much time to prove himself thus far in the Cup Series, but Heim is certainly the prospect with a larger amount of fanfare. There’s simply not enough seats to satisfy all of their drivers, and Toyota can’t risk losing Heim to Chevrolet or Ford, who would jump at the opportunity of bringing one of the brightest prospects in all of NASCAR aboard if he’s looking for a new home.

How can Herbst keep Heim off his tail and continue his drive for 23XI Racing? Well, the results will have to improve over the next couple of weeks, for sure. The Las Vegas, Nevada native is currently P32 in points, and he has zero top tens, top fives or laps led in 2025. His best finish is P14, which came at Texas Motor Speedway.

As for Heim, he’s been tearing up the Truck Series, and it’s evident he’s simply spinning his wheels in NASCAR’s third tier. Winning is fun, but Heim wants the chance to prove himself against NASCAR’s best. When he’s moonlighted in the Cup Series, it’s gone well — he finished P13 at Kansas Speedway during an appearance earlier this season.

While 23XI Racing has a ton to figure out with their charter situation and their lawsuit against NASCAR, it’s easy to see they have a tough decision between Herbst and Heim. While the former brings a fully-sponsored ride that can occasionally rise above and compete, Heim seems to be the better prospect behind the wheel. Many will side with him over Herbst because of that, but the decision is certainly more nuanced than that.

All told, Dale Earnhardt Jr. can see the pickle 23XI Racing finds themselves in. Whether Riley Herbst or Corey Heim is in the No. 35 in 2026 remains to be seen, but the team will be expecting big things from whoever is behind the wheel when NASCAR returns for the Daytona 500 next season.