Big Machine Racing — Team Profile
Series: O'Reilly Auto Parts Series | Manufacturer: Chevrolet Organization Tier: Mid-Tier (Single-Car) Technical Alliance: Richard Childress Racing
2026 O'Reilly Program
Big Machine Racing fields the No. 48 Chevrolet full-time in 2026, driven by Patrick Staropoli — a retinal surgeon, Harvard summa cum laude graduate, and one of the most distinctive personal stories in the garage. His primary sponsor, SYFOVRE (a treatment for geographic atrophy), is directly connected to his own medical specialty and advocacy work through his "Driving to Fight Blindness" initiative.
The team's 2026 season has been shaped by a mid-season crew suspension. After five races with crew chief Patrick Donahue, NASCAR cited the No. 48 for a Rule 10.5.2.5 violation (ballast infraction) at Las Vegas, suspending Donahue, spotter Dillon Bassett, and engineer Morgan Olsen for four races. With substitute crew chief Darrell Philips, Staropoli's average finish dropped from 19.6 to 26.5. Kansas (Race 10) marks the crew's reunion.
| Car | Driver | Crew Chief |
|---|---|---|
| No. 48 | Patrick Staropoli | Patrick Donahue |
The Organization
Big Machine Racing is an O'Reilly Series program associated with Scott Borchetta and the Big Machine Label Group, one of Nashville's most prominent independent music labels. The team operates under a technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing, with the No. 48 prepared at RCR's Welcome, North Carolina facility — giving a single-car program access to multi-car team resources and engineering data.
2026 Story
Big Machine's 2026 file is equal parts human-interest feature and competitive comeback. Staropoli sits 20th in the standings through nine races with 129 points — 101 behind Taylor Gray's 12th-place Chase cutline. The math requires gaining roughly seven points per race on Gray over 15 remaining regular-season events. It is steep, but with Donahue's crew fully restored and the RCR alliance providing competitive equipment, the team has a credible foundation for the attempt.
The story underneath the standings is what makes the No. 48 distinctive in the garage: a practicing retinal surgeon who won the PEAK Stock Car Dream Challenge, stepped away for nine years to complete medical training, and returned to full-time national racing. No other team in the series carries that kind of narrative.