Toni Breidinger talks signing with TRICON Garage, expectations for 2025

On Tuesday, Toni Breidinger officially took the next step in her NASCAR career. 

TRICON Garage signed the 25-year-old from San Francisco for the 2025 season, which will mark Breidinger's first full-time campaign in NASCAR's top three series. 

"I think it (the deal) has been in the works since halfway through the ARCA season," Breidinger told Yardbarker. "I wanted to see how the ARCA season went just to make sure I was ready for that next step. Even before the season started, I felt like my time in ARCA had run its course in a sense."

2024 saw Breidinger finish fourth in the ARCA standings — a career-best mark — and finish inside the top 10 in 11 of 20 races. 

"I got the experience I wanted, maybe not always the results I wanted," Breidinger added, reminiscing about her time in the series. "I felt like there were races that got away a little bit. I learned a lot in that series and felt it was time for that next step, especially after doing some Truck Series races." 

Breidinger competed in three Truck Series races in 2023 with TRICON Garage, and she made her only Truck Series start of 2024 with the team at Daytona, finishing 27th. 

Breidinger will drive for an organization that has been steadily on the rise. Since moving to Toyota Racing Development and rebranding in the fall of 2022, the team has been a weekly contender for wins and a perennial contender for championships. Breidinger's confirmed teammates for 2025 include Corey Heim, who has made the Championship 4 in consecutive seasons and won six times in 2024, and Tanner Gray, who is entering his sixth season of full-time Truck Series competition. 

"It's important to me that there are veterans to lean on," Breidinger said. "Tanner and Corey both have a lot of experience in the Truck Series. I'm excited that they're both willing to answer my questions."

Despite her years in the ARCA Menards Series lending her experience at many tracks on the Truck Series schedule, Breidinger won't be complacent in her preparation.

"I'm trying not to judge tracks before I get there," Breidinger said.  "There's some I think I'm more comfortable with because I have run them in ARCA. The ones I haven't been to before, I'm less confident. Tracks like Phoenix and Kansas I've been to multiple times, I'd say I'm more confident." 

Breidinger noted that there is one particular piece of advice that she'll carry with her during every race: run all the laps. 

"You're not going to learn if you're not finishing the races and running all the laps," Breidinger said. "For my rookie season, I want to be a sponge and soak up everything. I want to keep the fenders on (the truck) and learn as much as I can."

Breidinger doesn't put expectations on herself — a decision forged by her preparation as an athlete. 

"I try not to put expectations on myself in the sense that if I put in the work and the preparation throughout the offseason and the season, the results will come. But at the end of the year, I feel like winning Rookie of the Year would be really cool."

Breidinger will begin her quest for the Rookie of the Year crown at the Daytona International Speedway on Feb. 14 in the season-opening Fresh From Florida 250. 

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.