Brandon Jones to make his 300th Xfinity start at Homestead

Brandon Jones will achieve a milestone start this weekend in the Xfinity Playoff event at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The driver of the No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro will make his 300th career start in the Xfinity circuit.

A native of Atlanta, Georgia, Jones made his inaugural presence in the Xfinity Series at Iowa Speedway in May 2015. By then, he had won two races in the ARCA Menards Series and one event in the ARCA Menards Series East, all while driving for Turner Scott Motorsports (TSM).

He had also made 11 career starts in the Craftsman Truck Series, recording a total of two top-10 results while competing between TSM and GMS Racing. Driving the No. 33 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing (RCR) on a part-time basis, Jones started fifth and finished eighth in his Xfinity debut. He then made four additional Xfinity starts in 2015, which started in the series’ second visit of the season at Iowa in August along with the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Bristol Motor Speedway, both also occurring in August, before wrapping up his part-time schedule at Kentucky Speedway in September. During this span, Jones notched a season-best fifth-place result at Kentucky, which also marked his first career top-five finish in the series.

In 2016, Jones campaigned as a full-time Xfinity competitor in RCR’s No. 33 Chevrolet Camaro. After finishing in seventh place during the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway in February, the Atlanta native proceeded to record 10 additional top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, which were enough for him to claim a spot into the 2016 Xfinity Series Playoffs.

Jones fell out of title contention after finishing 26th, 17th, and 16th throughout the Round of 12.He recorded a single top-10 result through the remaining four scheduled events and settled in 10th place in the final standings. Despite achieving his first career pole position for the 2017 season opener at Daytona, he only recorded a total of three top-10 results throughout the 33-race schedule as his average-finishing result dropped from 13.8 to 21.4. After missing the 2017 Xfinity Playoffs, Jones, who finished no higher than 11th throughout the Playoffs, ended up in 16th place in the final standings.

For the 2018 season, Jones transitioned from RCR to Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) to pilot the No. 19 Toyota Camry on a full-time basis in the Xfinity Series. Commencing the season by finishing 10th at Daytona, he utilized consistency in the form of a season-best runner-up result at Talladega Superspeedway in May. He also won the pole at Dover Motor Speedway in May, and a total of 12 top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch to qualify for his second career Playoffs.

Jones recorded two top-10 results throughout the Round of 1 but was eliminated from the Playoffs. But, he finished strong with three additional top-10 results in the final four events on the schedule before claiming ninth place in the final driver’s standings. Overall, Jones boosted his average-finishing result to 13.6 and recorded both double-digit results of top-10 runs (17) and triple-digit results of laps led (173) in a season for the first time in his career. He had also surpassed 100 career starts in the Xfinity Series.

Jones’ second Xfinity campaign as a JGR competitor commenced on a strong note as he finished in third place at Daytona in February. He then finished in the top four three additional times and logged in a total of 13 top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch before qualifying for his third career appearance in the Playoffs.

Jones was eliminated from title contention early after finishing no higher than 11th throughout the Round of 12. He responded by notching his first career victory in his 134th Xfinity Series start at Kansas Speedway in October after leading the final 10 laps and muscling away from the field during a five-lap shootout, which made him the third first-time winner of the season alongside Michael Annett and Austin Cindric. Finishing no lower than 11th through the final three events on the schedule, Jones claimed 10th place in the final standings. By then, Jones had tripled his top-five results recorded from the previous season (six).

The 2020 Xfinity season was a breakout year for Jones, who claimed two top-10 results through the first three events on the schedule before notching his first victory of the season and the second of his career at Phoenix Raceway in March amid a late battle with teammate Kyle Busch. The Atlanta native then recorded five top-10 results during his next 12 starts before recording his second victory of the season at Kansas in July after overtaking Austin Cindric on the final lap amid an overtime shootout.

Another six races later, Jones capitalized on a late-race skirmish involving teammate Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain to overtake both before the final lap and claim victory No. 3 of the season at Darlington Raceway in September. Proceeding to make his fourth career appearance in the Playoffs, Jones transferred into the Round of 8 for the first time in his career after finishing no lower than 11th throughout the Round of 12. But he was eliminated from title contention after finishing ninth, 25th and ninth, respectively, throughout the Round of 8. Managing a strong third-place finish during the finale at Phoenix Raceway in November, Jones settled in a career-best sixth place in the final driver’s standings. By then, he had achieved a career-best 19 top-10 results, 10 of which were top fives, 160 laps led and a career-best average-finishing result of 12.8.

Despite commencing the 2021 Xfinity season with a hard incident at Daytona, Jones recorded a season-best runner-up result at Michigan International Speedway in August, nine top-five results and 13 top-10 results throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch, all of which were enough for him to make the Playoffs for the fifth time in his career. Despite finishing no lower than 11th throughout the seven-race Playoff stretch, Jones’ title hopes evaporated following the Round of 8 as he claimed seventh place both during the finale and in the final standings. By then, he achieved a career-high 11 top-five results and tied his career-high results of top-10 runs in a season (19). He had also surpassed 200 career starts in the Xfinity circuit.

Making his fifth campaign as a Joe Gibbs Racing competitor for the 2022 Xfinity season, Jones commenced the season by recording a runner-up result at Phoenix in March and three top-10 finishes through seven starts. Then at Martinsville Speedway in April, Jones bumped and overtook teammate Ty Gibbs on the final lap to snap a one-year winless drought with his fifth career victory in the series. He finished in the top 10 six additional times in 18 events on the regular-season calendar before making his sixth career appearance in the Playoffs.

After transferring into the Round of 8 amid respective finishes of 27th, ninth and seventh throughout the Round of 12, the Georgian finished ninth and 15th, respectively, through the Round of 8’s first two events. Then during the Round of 8 finale at Martinsville in October, Jones, who made a bold three-wide pass on Ty Gibbs and Noah Gragson during an overtime shootout, was leading on the final lap when Gibbs bumped and sent his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate spinning and crashing into the Turn 1 outside wall, which plummeted him to 23rd place in the final running order and evaporated his final effort in making the Championship 4 round.

Concluding the season in 11th place during the finale at Phoenix, Jones ended up in seventh place in the final standings. By then, he led a career-high 240 laps and notched a career-high five poles to coincide with his Martinsville April victory, six top-five results, 13 top-10 results and an average-finishing result of 13.4.

Jones was named the driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro entry for JR Motorsports In September 2022 for the 2023 season, replacing Gragson who moved up to the Cup Series. Commencing the season with a 14th-place finish at Daytona, Jones only recorded two top-five results and five top-10 results through the first 25 events on the schedule. Despite posting a season-best runner-up result during the regular-season finale at Kansas in September, he missed the Xfinity Playoffs for the first time since 2017. Jones would proceed to steer the No. 9 entry to three top-10 results throughout the final seven events on the schedule before ending up in 14th place in the final standings.

Remaining at JR Motorsports for a second full-time campaign in 2024, Jones recorded two poles, a runner-up result at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May and seven top-10 results through the season’s 26-race regular-season stretch. He missed the Playoffs but since then he has finished in the top 10 once in his previous four starts. Jones is currently in 14th place in the standings. He is also down to his final three races with JR Motorsports as he will be returning to Joe Gibbs Racing tp pilot a Toyota Supra for the 2025 Xfinity season.

Through 299 previous Xfinity starts Jones has achieved five victories, 12 poles, 40 top-five results, 119 top-10 results, 921 laps led and an average-finishing result of 15.7.

Brandon Jones will make his 300th Xfinity Series career start at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Credit One NASCAR Amex Credit Card 300. The event is set for Saturday, October 26, and will air at 4 p.m. ET on the CW Network.