B.J. McLeod returned to the NASCAR Cup Series to drive the No. 78 Chevrolet for his Live Fast Motorsports team this past weekend at EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta Motor Speedway), marking his first start since the Atlanta race back in February.
February's Atlanta race marked the 30th superspeedway race in the existence of Live Fast Motorsports, and McLeod had been in the No. 78 car for all of them, including the two Daytona 500s for which he failed to qualify in 2024 and 2025.
That streak came to an end in April at Talladega Superspeedway, when Daniel Dye made his Cup Series debut in the car and registered a season-high 24th place finish for the team. He also competed in the mid-June race at Pocono Raceway and placed 29th, the team's second-best result of the year.
B.J. McLeod out after last-place Atlanta DNF
Unfortunately for McLeod, his Cup Series return ended early due to a mechanical issue on lap 106 of 263 around the four-turn, 1.54-mile (2.478-kilometer) Hampton, Georgia oval, where he had recorded his best finish of 2025, and best finish of any kind since 2022, with a 16th place result.
It marked McLeod's third DNF in three starts this season, and it was his second last-place result, the other coming in the season-opening Daytona 500.
While McLeod has no current plans to return for any more starts this season, the No. 78 car is set to make several additional appearances, all with Dye behind the wheel. But those races do not include this weekend's race at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
The only non-chartered (open) car on this weekend's entry list is the No. 66 Garage 66 Ford, which was the only other open car entered at Atlanta. Chad Finchum is set to drive it again at North Wilkesboro.
Dye is set to drive the No. 78 Chevrolet in next weekend's Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as well as the season's two remaining superspeedway races at Daytona International Speedway in August and Talladega in October.
The only other driver to have driven the No. 78 car so far this year is Katherine Legge, who drove it at Watkins Glen International and Charlotte Motor Speedway in May. Her Coca-Cola 600 start made her the sixth driver in motorsport history to attempt the Memorial Day Double, as she also competed in IndyCar's Indy 500 earlier that afternoon.
Sunday's Window World 450 is set to be shown live on TNT from North Wilkesboro Speedway starting at 7:00 p.m. ET. Don't miss the track's first points race since 1996!
