By Luis Torres, Staff Writer/Photographer
Defending NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love has been announced as the new driver of the Wood Brothers No. 21 Ford in the NASCAR Cup Series.
The legendary organization confirmed Wednesday that the 21-year-old will be replacing Josh Berry, who announced last week he wasn’t returning with the team, beginning next season.
After years of making his name in the ARCA Menard Series ladder as a teenager, Love has made his name for himself in NOAPS since 2024. In that span, Love has collected three career wins, 10 poles and last year’s championship.
“Driving the No. 21 for Wood Brothers Racing is truly an honor,” said Love in a press release.
“This team has played such an important role in NASCAR history, and the drivers who have sat behind the wheel of this car are some of the greatest our sport has ever seen. I’m incredibly grateful to everyone at Wood Brothers Racing, Team Penske and Ford Racing for believing in me – I’m excited to get to work, continue learning from the people around me and compete at the highest level.”
Jon Wood, President of Wood Brothers Racing, acknowledges the Californian’s accomplishments at a young age and looks forward of having him in the No. 21 Ford.
“Jesse has accomplished a lot at a young age,” said Wood. “He’s demonstrated the ability to win races, compete for championships and handle the expectations that come with racing at a high level. We’re looking forward to giving him the opportunity to take the next step in his career with the No. 21 team.”
Love currently drives for Richard Childress Racing’s No. 2 team in NOAPS and at one point shared the No. 33 Cup ride with Austin Hill where he’s made two starts this season. Those two being at Circuit of the Americas and Talladega Superspeedway where he finished 27th in both efforts.
Following the untimely death of Kyle Busch last month, the third part-time Cup entry hasn’t made an appearance. In large part of Hill being tapped to run the former No. 8, now renumbered No. 33, for the rest of the 2026 season.
Time will tell if Love will break the stigma the No. 21 has endured since Ryan Blaney joined Team Penske in 2018.
Following Blaney’s success with WBR that included his maiden Cup win at Pocono in 2017, the team has had five drivers with three of them (Matt DiBenedetto, Harrison Burton and Berry) making the post-season in the NASCAR Playoffs Era (2014-2025).
However, neither have lasted past three seasons with Burton being the longest tenured driver (2022-24) before being dropped in favor of Berry. In fact, the last time a Wood Brothers driver who ran more than three full seasons was Elliott Sadler from 1999-2002.
Love joins Corey Heim (Rookie of the Year eligibility pending) as the two confirmed drivers moving up to NASCAR’s premiere division.
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