Jesse Love NASCAR rising star became reality on November 1, 2025, at Phoenix Raceway, when the 20-year-old seized victory in the Xfinity Series Championship Race, delivering a memorable win and clinching the championship for Richard Childress Racing. Love’s energy and skill propelled him past a competitive Championship 4 lineup, signaling the start of an already promising legacy in American motorsports.
Triumphant Performance Secures Championship
Jesse Love’s title run at Phoenix was defined by his ability to surpass fellow Championship 4 contenders from JR Motorsports: reigning champion Justin Allgaier, young talent Carson Kvapil, and his close friend Connor Zilisch. Love held his own in duels with Allgaier and Zilisch, at times slipping to fourth, but ultimately surged ahead with 24 laps to go, overtaking Zilisch. Zilisch, who had scored 11 wins throughout the season, finished third and earned Rookie of the Year, while Aric Almirola moved up to take second, securing a team owners’ championship for Joe Gibbs Racing.
Only the sport’s most dedicated historians may recall the deeper details of Love’s triumph: he brought Richard Childress Racing its sixth Xfinity Series championship, following prior victories with celebrated drivers such as Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Austin Dillon, and Tyler Reddick. This victory marked the organization’s first Xfinity title since 2019, placing Love’s name among established champions and strengthening the team’s storied NASCAR history.
Love’s latest accomplishment capped a rapid ascent through the ranks, adding to accolades as a two-time ARCA Menards Series West titlist and 2023 ARCA Menards Series champion. He also secured the 2024 Xfinity Series Rookie of the Year award, extending an already impressive record of achievement for his age.
Unconventional Talent and Style Impress Peers
Love’s approach is marked by a blend of laid-back personality and fierce focus, reflective of both the sociable ease of IndyCar star Pato O’Ward, who shares Mexican heritage with Love, and the contemplative edge of Paul Newman. This distinctive mix has drawn attention from luminaries across the motorsports world, including Richard Childress, crew chief Danny Stockman, and General Motors executive Dr. Eric Warren, all of whom have been struck by Love’s drive and tenacity.
Justin Allgaier, one of Love’s closest rivals in the title race, praised the young driver’s performance after the Phoenix event.
Jesse just did a really good job tonight. That last 100 laps for Jesse was probably one of the best drives I’ve ever seen him put on. Congrats to the 2 team. They deserved it tonight. Look at the season that Jesse has had. Not only did he win the championship—he won the race. He drove by all of us. He did all the right things. That, to me, is doing what your job is and excelling at it. They rose to the occasion, and we didn’t.
– Justin Allgaier, Driver
Richard Childress, who had monitored Love’s progress for years before signing him, offered a strong endorsement of his talent:
Jesse has tons of talent. He’s going to go a long way in this sport. I’ve seen a lot of drivers come and go, but Jesse, he’s the real deal, for sure.
– Richard Childress, Team Owner
Speaking on the team’s direction for the future, Childress added,
I think our plans is to run for another championship next year in Xfinity, run some Cup races, and see where it goes in ’27.
– Richard Childress, Team Owner
The Relationship Between Driver and Crew Chief
Central to Love’s success is his partnership with crew chief Danny Stockman, with both describing the connection as akin to family. Stockman explained,
The people that are around me closely know that he’s like my kid,
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief. He continued,
We have a really, really, really strong relationship. What I love about that kid, and it was the same with Cup drivers Austin and Ty Dillon, is that he’s hard on me and I’m hard on him. But it’s all for a common goal. And when you have that relationship, it’s super-special because there’s no ego involved, and when you get to that point, success comes.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
Love echoed the sentiment, emphasizing mutual respect and motivation:
like a brother to me. I feel like we’re friends first and then crew chief—driver second, which I’ve only had a couple of times in my life. He has the Grit and tenacity are his two biggest traits, and he expects a lot out of me, sometimes more than I can give him from time to time. So Danny has pushed me to be a lot better. We’ve had really hard conversations and yelled and screamed and cussed and told each other things when we both didn’t want to hear it, but we knew we both need to say it.
– Jesse Love, Driver
Dedication to Learning and Growth Drives Success
Jesse Love’s relentless pursuit of improvement has not gone unnoticed by General Motors and his team. Eric Warren, of GM Global Motorsports Competition, shared his admiration:
Jesse’s been one of our developer drivers and so it’s awesome to see his performance and what it will certainly mean to his career and how hard he’s worked. Again, we get to see these young drivers from a young age and how hard they work in the background, what it means to them, and just seeing him be emotional is super-special. He puts in the work. He does.
– Eric Warren, GM Global Motorsports Competition
The dynamic between Love and Stockman includes an intense exchange of information, sometimes leading to concern from team owner Childress about sharing too much data. Stockman recounted the process, explaining that Love’s appetite for knowledge outpaces that of any previous driver he’s worked with:
Jesse, he needs that type of info. He wants more info than any other driver I’ve had to work with,
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief. Stockman continued,
And R.C., at the beginning of our relationship, was stressed out, like ‘You’re telling him too much, giving him too much info. You need to calm down.’ But this is what Jesse wants. He wants all this. So it is been good.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
Reflecting on the team’s ability to rise to the championship moment, Stockman said,
We rose when it mattered. Tonight it mattered, and we made it happen.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
Stockman highlighted Love’s work ethic as exceptional:
This is all he knows. Literally. The kid eats and sleeps race cars. I worked with a lot of young kids. This kid literally puts in his own work at his own all day long every day. He works with Josh Wise and Scott speed, but I don’t have to teach him how to study anything. He does it himself. So he wants it as bad as I’ve ever seen, for sure.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
Dealing With Comparisons and Rivalries
A challenging dynamic for Love during the season was his comparison with friend and fellow competitor Connor Zilisch. The crew chief acknowledged the impact of this rivalry:
That’s been a lot of conversation on that this year, for sure,
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief. He added,
They helped each other, honestly. I think that relationship is special. But we have to focus on our own program. And if you just look at Jesse’s season, he’s done good. But when you look at Connor’s, it’s been way above anything you’ve ever seen before. That that puts a lot of strain on teams. I am on him about worrying about what we got going on. And to be quite honest, he won [Saturday]. Connor won 11 races, but when it mattered tonight, it did not happen. He won a lot of races, but he’s not an Xfinity Series champion. We beat him straight up. It is that simple.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
Jesse Love Shares His Thoughts as a New Champion
Love openly discussed the emotional struggles and motivation that shaped his journey to the championship, stating:
But I knew [that] I can’t control what Connor does, but I can control what I do every day. I woke up, and he has motivated me to be better. I don’t like losing to him. And I’ve woken up every day, trying to beat him probably more than myself. So as much as [the championship] makes me feel really good, I’m not going to have Connor to compare myself to next year. So I’m going to have to change that mindset pretty quick.
– Jesse Love, Driver
Following his championship triumph, Love communicated the relief and realization of hard work paying off:
I just feel so clean, relieved.
– Jesse Love, Driver
Addressing criticism and recognition alike, Love responded with conviction about his achievement:
I really don’t give a s— what people think. I get, get a big old trophy. I get a nice check. I get a lot of things that come out of this. When I say stuff and people call me out on Twitter or something like I do actually listen, so their opinions are valid. The world would be kind of a boring place if we all agreed on everything, and that’s never going to happen. So I’m going to look at it. I don’t really care.
– Jesse Love, Driver
As the evening closed on his championship win, Love cherished the moment and the affirmation from his crew chief that punctuated the accomplishment:
You’re a champion, young man. You’re a champion.
– Danny Stockman, Crew Chief
The Road Ahead for a Promising Career
Jesse Love’s Xfinity Series championship at such a young age has sparked widespread attention and set the stage for an influential run in NASCAR. With a future that may include further Xfinity competition and potential Cup Series starts, Love’s relentless pursuit of knowledge and performance, strong support system, and ability to shine under intense competition mark him as one of the most significant rising stars in stock-car racing today. As Love and Richard Childress Racing look toward continued success, the sport’s fans and insiders anticipate that the achievements witnessed at Phoenix are only the beginning for this remarkable competitor.
