Hendrick Motorsports to field No. 17 car in 4 Xfinity races

Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 17 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet will return for four NASCAR Xfinity Series races in 2023, the organization said Wednesday.

The No. 17 car will return at Circuit of the Americas, March 25, with William Byron driving.

Kyle Larson will race the car twice – June 10 at Sonoma and September 2 at Darlington. Alex Bowman will race it August 19 at Watkins Glen.

Veteran crew chiefs Kevin Meendering and Greg Ives will oversee the effort.

“We learned a lot in 2022 and felt the extra seat time was valuable for our drivers,” said Jeff Andrews, president and general manager of Hendrick Motorsports. “Bringing back the program was an easy decision, but we know competing at a high level in the Xfinity Series takes a big commitment. We’re going to throw everything we have at these four races. Winning is the priority.”

The crew chiefs and drivers are the same as last season but the drivers’ races are different.

Last season, Bowman drove the No. 17 at the Indianapolis road course and Byron drove it at Watkins Glen. Meanwhile, Larson drove the car at Darlington but his other race was at Road America.

“Watching the No. 17 return to the track last year was very special,” said team owner Rick Hendrick. “It was fun being back in the Xfinity Series. The team had strong results on the track, but we didn’t quite get to victory lane. Having unfinished business gives us extra motivation this season.”

The car’s best finish was 2nd – with Bowman at Indy and Larson at Road America.