Since Kevin Harvick hung up his gloves at Stewart-Haas Racing, it’s been a few series of shuffling there. The team has brought in Josh Berry to fill Harvick’s big shoes, and Eddie D’Hondt has taken the helm as Berry’s new spotter. Meanwhile, Riley Herbst will be making waves again in the Xfinity 2024 season. It is going to be a completely new chapter for the team.

Looking at 2024, Josh Berry’s leap from the grassroots of short-track and model racing to the NASCAR Cup Series is nothing short of a Cinderella story. And then there’s Riley Herbst, who, after a good three to four years of grit and grind, finally hit the jackpot with his first win in October.

Riley Herbst finally hit the jackpot in Las Vegas, shaking a huge monkey off his back

Last October, Riley Herbst zoomed to his first big win in the national NASCAR series right at his home track in Vegas. Leading a whopping 103 laps and finishing a solid 15 seconds ahead of the pack, he clinched his first-ever victory in the Xfinity Series. Chatting with NBC Sports, Herbst shared his relief: “I don’t know if I expected it to be three-and-a-half, four years by any means, but finally got it done. Feels like a huge weight has just been lifted off my shoulders.”

However, the victory didn’t come easy. Herbst poured his heart and soul into rigorous training, film study, and simulator sessions, aiming to rise to the top in NASCAR. Speaking to Sportsnaut, Herbst reflected on the journey: “I don’t feel like the pressure going into this season is higher than the pressure I ever put on myself. The way I see it is that the pressure is off now that I won.”

Riley Herbst also looked back at his early days, admitting he was pretty green back in 2020, with no practice and a lot to learn. When he stepped into Chase Briscoe‘s shoes at SHR, he knew filling them wouldn’t be a walk in the park. But Herbst’s track record speaks volumes now about his resilience: 67 top-10s and 23 top-fives in the Xfinity Series.

Despite missing the playoffs this year, he finished 11th and 10th in the championship standings in 2021 and 2022, driving the No. 98. He even made the playoffs as a rookie in 2020 with Joe Gibbs Racing. In October 2023, Stewart-Haas Racing announced that Riley Herbst would be back in the No. 98 Ford for the 2024 NASCAR Xfinity Series, with Monster Energy once again backing him up. This marks his fourth season with Stewart-Haas and his fifth in Xfinity overall.

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Riley Herbst also dabbled in the Cup series this season, making four starts at Daytona and Talladega. He snagged two top-10 finishes with Rick Ware Racing and Front Row Motorsports. Reflecting on his series performance, Herbst feels confident about his chemistry with crew chief Davin Restivo, looking forward to what the future holds on the tracks.

No. 98 is upbeat about his rapport with Davin Restivo

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Back in June 2023, the folks at Stewart-Haas Racing shook things up a bit. They decided it was time for a change at the helm of their NASCAR Xfinity Series program, which had been under Richard Boswell’s watchful eye since 2017. Boswell switched gears to lead the charge for Chase Briscoe and the No. 14 team in the NASCAR Cup Series, making room for Davin Restivo to step in.

Riley Herbst, reflecting on his time racing with Davin Restivo, especially after nabbing his first win together, couldn’t help but praise their teamwork. “The biggest thing was that chemistry with Davin. Davin wants to be a Cup Series crew chief. He has that huge motivation. I want to race on Sundays,” Herbst said.

Read More: Xfinity Legend Mark Martin Pens Heartfelt Message to Riley Herbst for “Whipping” Entire Vegas Grid

2024 looks like it’s going to be quite the ride for Riley Herbst with this passionate duo at the wheel.