FONTANA, CA – MARCH 16: Rodney Childers, crew chief for the #4 Busch Beer Ford, driven by Kevin Harvick , stands on pit wall during qualifying for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway on March 16, 2018 in Fontana, California. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)
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Rodney Childers is not done with life as a crew chief just yet. The 2014 Nascar Cup Series champion unexpectedly parted ways with Spire Motorsports earlier this year, and has since been seen working on late models with Kevin Harvick.
But the 40-time Cup Series winner couldn’t stay away from Nascar for too long. Childers announced this week he will be joining JR Motorsports in the soon-to-be-titled O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (currently Xfinity Series) with both Carson Kvapil and Connor Zilisch. Zilisch, who will be a Cup Series rookie for Trackhouse Racing in 2026, will continue to compete part time for JRM.
“I’m so excited to be joining the JRM family,” Childers said. “To see what Dale, Kelley and Mr. H have built here is quite amazing and their results show for themselves. Dale and Kelley have meant a lot to me for some 30 years and I can’t wait to be part of this group. Plus, I get to be the lucky guy to lead two amazing young men that have a huge amount of talent and a big future in our sport.”
Childers will be leading the No. 1 team, which is Kvapil’s current ride. Zilisch has nine wins in his first full Xfinity Series season. Kvapil is winless this year, but has six top fives and 13 top 10s in his rookie campaign.
“Rodney’s resume and career speak for itself,” said JRM team owner and NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr. “Rodney and I grew up together and have known each other since we were kids, That’s a relationship that has always been close and has remained close to this day. We’ve always had interest in working together in motorsports and I’m thankful that this opportunity came about and we could bring him into the JRM family.”
Childers was left searching for a new team after Stewart-Haas Racing shut down. He did not join Josh Berry at Wood Brothers Racing, and instead went to work with Justin Haley at Spire Motorsports. But after nine races together, something was amiss and Childers left his role.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/josephwolkin/2025/09/24/rodney-childers-to-make-crew-chief-return-with-jr-motorsports/
