Zane Smith to enter 2023 Daytona 500, some Cup/Xfinity starts

Zane Smith has enjoyed a strong first year at Front Row Motorsports, winning the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series regular season championship with three victories. In addition to returning to FRM for the 2023 season, he will begin making select starts in the Cup and Xfinity Series including the Daytona 500.

Smith ran ten Xfinity races in 2019 for JR Motorsports and scored seven top tens, but has focused on the Truck Series since with a pair of runner-up points finishes before joining FRM in 2022. Two races into the playoffs, he is second in points with top tens in all but three events.

“We have been thrilled with the performance by Zane this season,” FRM owner Bob Jenkins said. “We always felt that he was the next breakthrough star in the sport, and he has been proving that this season. We have a plan laid out for him and our next step will be to put Zane and that team in NASCAR Cup Series races where we know we can be successful. We also want to give Zane the opportunity to win more races and a championship with our truck series program, and we are excited to see what he will do next season.”

Since becoming a Truck regular, he made one Cup and Xfinity start each with both coming in substitute duty for drivers who tested positive for COVID-19. In 2021, he filled in for Justin Haley at Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Dover race and finished thirty-sixth after a crash. A year later, Smith made his Cup début at Gateway with RFK Racing in Chris Buescher‘s place, where he placed seventeenth.

“Chris Lawson (crew chief), his team, and Zane have really worked well together this season,” added general manager Jerry Freeze. “We do not want to change that chemistry, but also feel this team is up to the challenge with Zane to compete in the NASCAR Cup Series. We will be strategic as what races we select to enter. We want to allow Zane to highlight what many have seen him do this year at the elite level. We will announce those races later once the 2023 schedules are announced. Until that time, we are focused on winning the Truck Series championship.”

His 2020 Truck runner-up finish notched him Rookie of the Year honours as well as the Most Popular Driver Award. He also has experience in the ARCA Menards Series, where he again placed second in the championship in 2018, and the Stadium Super Trucks.

“Front Row Motorsports has a lot of great momentum now, not only with their Truck Series program, but also with their Cup Series programme,” Smith commented. “While I’m 100 percent focused now on the Truck Series playoffs and racing to win a championship for our partners, I’m excited for what the future holds next season as I get the opportunity to also compete at the next level and continue to grow as a race car driver.”

His 2023 Cup starts will come in a third FRM car, while FRM intends to find a partner for his Xfinity schedule. RSS Racing, SS-Green Light Racing, and Stewart-Haas Racing all field Fords in the Xfinity Series and are technical allies with each other.