Ryan Preece Sets Another NASCAR Start

Ryan Preece

Getty Ryan Preece will make his Xfinity Series season debut at Richmond Raceway.

A unique 2022 NASCAR season continues for Ryan Preece. The Stewart-Haas Racing reserve driver will make his first NASCAR Xfinity Series season start while joining forces with BJ McLeod Motorsports.

The multi-car team announced the news on March 29. BJ McLeod Motorsports confirmed that it will field four cars during the trip to Richmond Raceway with Preece behind the wheel of one of them. He will drive the No. 5 entry with Mohawk Northeast as his primary partner, continuing a relationship that featured a previous trip to Victory Lane.

The race at Richmond will be the first of multiple Xfinity Series starts for Preece. The Connecticut native will make three starts for BJ McLeod Motorsports while running a part-time schedule across the three national series.

“We are excited to have Ryan race for BJMM at Richmond Raceway,” said team co-owner B.J. McLeod in a press release. “Ryan Preece is a skillful and passionate driver that we are excited to welcome to the track on behalf of B.J. McLeod Motorsports. Preece’s impressive reputation on the track has the entire BJMM team eager to root him on.”

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Preece Has Made 59 Total Xfinity Series Starts

Ryan Preece

GettyRyan Preece celebrates a win at Iowa Speedway.

Preece has made nearly 200 starts across the national three series, but the majority have been in the Cup Series. He has only made 59 starts in the Xfinity Series with 2016 serving as his lone full-time season.

While Preece has fewer starts in the series, he has still secured two trips to Victory Lane. He partnered with Mohawk Northeast and Joe Gibbs Racing at Iowa Speedway during the 2017 season, and he led for 141 of the 245 laps, including the final 78. He held off teammate Kyle Benjamin to secure his first national series win.

Preece returned to Victory Lane one year later during a trip to Bristol Motor Speedway. He partnered with Rheem and Joe Gibbs Racing for the short track race and led 39 laps while battling Justin Allgaier.


Preece Has Only Made 3 Starts in 2022

Ryan Preece

GettyRyan Preece (left) prepares for the Busch Light Clash.

While Preece hasn’t made an Xfinity Series start since 2019, he has spent the first portion of the 2022 season focusing on another series. He joined David Gilliland Racing for two Camping World Truck Series starts after taking the organization to Victory Lane at Nashville Superspeedway in 2021.

Preece returned to the No. 17 Ford F-150 for only the third time at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 4. He posted the fifth-fastest time during qualifying before avoiding nearly all of the incidents and finishing in fourth place behind Chandler Smith, Kyle Busch, and Stewart Friesen. He then returned to the entry on March 19 for the trip to Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he finished seventh.

Preece has only made one other start during the early portion of the 2022 season, albeit at an exhibition event. He joined Rick Ware Racing for the Busch Light Clash at the LA Memorial Coliseum. Preece drove the No. 15 and qualified for the main event after beating out multiple other drivers. However, he finished 20th overall after a mechanical issue.

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