Trackhouse Racing announces new crew chief for Ross Chastain No. 1 team

McSwain served as an interim crew chief for Byron when Rudy Fugle was not available. He was also a crew chief in the Xfinity Series (now called O’Reilly Auto Parts Series), leading Byron in once race in 2017 at JR Motorsports.

Chastain will look to do big things with McSwain after having a solid 2025 season with Surgen. He finished the year 10th in points after winning once race and earning four top-five finishes, and 12 finishes in the top 10.

Kevin Harvick shares thoughts on Ross Chastain

Chastian reached the playoffs but was eliminated after the Round of 12. After his playoff elimination, NASCAR legend Kevin Harvick shared his thoughts on Chastain.

“Ross Chastain is very well prepared week in and week out,” Harvick said on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour last month. “His work ethic is over the top. He’s very honest; he gives it all that he has. There’s no questioning any of that. I think in these types of moments, this is when you find out where people are from a championship standpoint. Is it real, or is it not, when you get to the last level?

“I think he just tries to do too much. I think he overthinks some of these things to the point where, ‘Do I really need to race that hard to the end of pit road so far that I’m trying to gain a spot on the 77 (Carson Hocevar) car that I go so far that I hit the wall driving off pit road?’ You got to draw the line between realistic and unrealistic, right? Don’t try to overdo the things that you’re doing.”