Overview
- Wood Brothers Racing announced on June 17, 2026 that Jesse Love will pilot the No. 21 Ford Mustang in the NASCAR Cup Series beginning with the 2027 Daytona 500.
- The team confirmed it declined the option on Josh Berry’s contract so he will not return to the No. 21 in 2027, and Berry will finish the 2026 season while exploring other opportunities for next year.
- Love arrives with a strong lower-series resume—he is the 2025 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion with three series wins and 50 top-10s in 83 starts—but he has only seven Cup starts to date.
- Wood Brothers operate under a technical alliance with Team Penske and receive support from Ford Racing, a partnership the team cites as a pathway to top-tier resources even as it says more 2027 team details will be released later.
- The signing removes Love from Richard Childress Racing’s internal candidate pool and alters the silly-season landscape, prompting questions about whether a young driver can translate development-series success into immediate Cup competitiveness.