NASCAR insider details 23XI driver lineup projections with third car for 2025

There have been rumblings that 23XI Racing is interested in purchasing one of the remaining charters up for sale from Stewart-Haas Racing.

Should that happen, 23XI will field three NASCAR Cup Series charters for the first time in its short existence. But who exactly would pilot that third charter? Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports took a look at the options and mentioned Riley Herbst and Corey Heim.

“With the team already having a Monster Energy relationship, adding Riley Herbst and his Monster deal would make sense,” Pockrass wrote Wednesday. “Corey Heim is the team’s driver of the future, but he might be a year or two away from being fully Cup ready.”

Herbst, 25, currently drives full-time in the Xfinity Series for SHR. He has captured one checkered flag in 154 starts and currently sits sixth in the points standings. Herbst has six Cup Series starts under his belt, finishing a career high P9 at Talladega last season.

Heim, meanwhile, is one of the top prospects in the sport. Just 21, Heim has a CRAFTSMAN Truck Series high three victories this season and is second behind only Christian Eckes for the points lead. A nine-time winner in the Truck Series, Heim has made 10 starts in the Xfinity Series and two starts in the Cup Series. He also serves a reserve driver for 23XI in the Cup Series.

Denny Hamlin discusses 23XI’s potential interest in third charter

Earlier this month, 23XI co-owner Denny Hamlin addressed 23XI’s potential interest in adding an additional charter. Hamlin said the team’s focus is on coming to an agreement with NASCAR on a new charter agreement before even thinking about investing more money into the team.

“23XI is interested in getting a charter deal done,” Hamlin said. “We don’t — right now, on Jan. 1, 2025, we don’t even have a charter. So, you can’t buy or sell something that doesn’t exist in our eyes. We have two charters till the end of this year. And until we get a charter agreement done, that’s all we have. I mean, I didn’t build that facility to stay a two-car team, but it always has to make financial sense. I’m not going to put myself in a position to where I’m having to shell out millions and millions of dollars every year just to keep this thing going. I will not do that personally.

“So, it has to make financial sense. And the charter agreement needs to be better than it is certainly before I invest any more money in it.”