Richard Childress’ Xfinity stars have amazing role models. Jesse Love, driver of the No. 2 Chevrolet, looks up to 4-time Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon and also USAC star Justin Grant. However, as Love’s role models are clear, the young speedster is also clear about who not to follow. Although that list may be too long in the rough-headed driving of NASCAR, he narrowed it down to a Craftsman Truck driver.

Being almost the same age as Love, Daniel Dye is an uprising star in NASCAR’s third tier. But alongside his good season – he posted 9 top-tens and 2 top-fives – Dye also harbors a reputation for wildness. Ranging from a felony lawsuit to igniting a multi-car wreck in Indianapolis, Dye is quite the root of chaos. And Love is well aware of that.

Jesse Love reveals his rowdy pick

Well, we all know the usual aggressive drivers in NASCAR. Ross Chastain should be your first pick, as the Cup Series driver has gotten into multiple stunts, including delivering an uppercut to Noah Gragson in Kansas. Then Carson Hocevar is another one, who intentionally spun out Harrison Burton in Nashville. But enough of Cup Series drama – let us dive into Truck Series driver Daniel Dye’s chaotic resume. In 2022, he incurred an ARCA Menards suspension and a felony charge when he struck a fellow student.

This year, he started the year with controversy. During the Xfinity race in Daytona, he made contact with Anthony Alfredo with 17 laps to go. To avoid spinning out, he aggressively shoved Alfredo to get ahead, and the latter went into the wall, his right front tire getting cut. This spun off a massive wreck involving Parker Retzlaff, Kyle Sieg, and Josh Williams. Again during the Truck race in Bristol in September, Dye blew the tires of his No. 43, following which Kaden Honeycutt’s No. 45 touched him and incurred damage. So Richard Childress’ Xfinity star, Jesse Love, is confident about his rowdy pick of the Truck series. In response to a question, “What driver in Xfinity probably has road rage?” Love wrote: “Daniel Dye.”

Dye’s Xfinity Series schedule has brought him in contact with Jesse Love. Thankfully that has not resulted in a wreck yet. This year, both drivers made the headlines when they grabbed the poles for a doubleheader at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Dye earned the pole for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ FR8 208. Love earned the pole for the NASCAR Xfinity Series’ RAPTOR King of Tough 250. While Daniel Dye made his team, McAnally-Hilgemann Racing proud, Jesse Love made history. Having won the previous weekend’s Daytona pole, he became the first driver in Xfinity Series history to go undefeated for the pole in his first two starts.

Moreover, Richard Childress’ star has matured well through the years.

Love knows how to avoid hate

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If you look at Carson Hocevar’s 2024 takeaways, you will notice a similar story. The Cup Series Rookie of the Year admitted that one lesson he learned was restraint, opposing his typically aggressive nature of driving. Jesse Love also picked up that valuable lesson, although he is way younger. In fact, that change came when he was barely crossing his teens – during his stellar 2023 ARCA season. After a crash at Phoenix and a possible dust-up with William Sawalich, Love’s numbers changed. Although his Venturini Motorsports vehicle stayed the same, Love changed something within.

As a result, Jesse Love took 10 trips to Victory Lane and clinched the ARCA title, matching Ty Gibbs’ mark from the 2021 season. He also landed a full-time Xfinity ride in Richard Childress Racing. Fox Sports’ Jamie Little had an interesting take on this sudden blooming. Love’s avoidance of a grudge was a big factor. “It was a race between him and William Sawalich. Things didn’t work out the way he wanted them to and his interview was so good afterwards. He didn’t deny that they had bad blood or got together, but he didn’t say anything negative about him like ‘I’m gonna take him out next time’ or ‘We’re gonna even the score.’ He was just grown up about it.”

Jesse Love spoke about his championship run after winning the ARCA Menards Series in 2023, saying, “I let go of my expectations and stopped thinking about winning all these races. That’s when the season really kicked off. I got a lot closer to God, and now I race a lot looser in the car.”

Despite overcoming road rage possibilities, Jesse Love does not shy away from pointing out rivals who are chaotic though. As the 2025 season rolls into view, let us wait and see what Love’s calm approach fetches for him.