NASCAR’s Newest Series Sponsor Will Be Music To Your Ears (Or Not)

FORT WORTH, TX – APRIL 04: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 NOS Energy Drink Toyota, signs the wall in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway on April 4, 2009 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jason Smith/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Getty Images for NASCAR

If you’re a fan of the catchy jingle from O’Reilly Auto Parts, good news: you’ll be hearing a lot more of it. If not, well—sorry about that.

NASCAR announced Monday that the automotive replacement parts company will be the new title sponsor of the second-tier touring series currently known as the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

“Like the great sport of NASCAR, O’Reilly Auto Parts was born in America and built on the hard work and drive of passionate people,” said NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell in a press release. “This new partnership allows us to continue to fuel that passion for the next generation of NASCAR’s stars and fans while celebrating the journey we’ve been on together for decades.”

The company, founded in 1957, is already a familiar name to NASCAR fans. O’Reilly first appeared in the sport in 1999 as a race entitlement sponsor for a Truck Series event at Texas Motor Speedway. In 2008, it became the “Official Auto Parts Retailer of NASCAR,” and since then has had its logo plastered across races in all three national series as well as several contingency awards. And of course, O’Reilly has been a longtime radio sponsor across NASCAR and Speedway Motorsports channels, armed with that jingle that’s either a stroke of marketing genius—or the soundtrack to your nightmares.

Now, starting in 2026, the company will step onto a bigger NASCAR stage than ever before.

“Our company is rooted in the same values that define NASCAR—teamwork, enthusiasm, and dedication,” said O’Reilly Auto Parts President Brent Kirby. “You’ll see those in action when our customers walk through our doors. We know they need fast service, and Team O’Reilly will get them the parts they need quickly, with excellent customer service. We welcome all fans to stop by our stores and see how our team can help keep them running.”

NASCAR’s version of Triple-A baseball dates back to 1982, when the sanctioning body cobbled together a collection of regional series and quickly landed a sponsor in Busch beer. That pairing of beer with a Cup Series fueled by Winston cigarettes was a perfect for the time, and the Busch Grand National Series soon became simply “the Busch Series.”

Over the decades, the series evolved into both a ladder for aspiring stars and a playground for established Cup drivers looking for extra track time—or a safety net for those needing to take a step back. Its sponsorship history has mirrored NASCAR’s shifting eras: from beer to insurance to broadband, as the sport moved from blue-collar roots toward corporate polish and eventually into the digital age.

Now it will bring its sponsorship back to the garage as NASCAR looks to appeal to a mechanical, DIY-minded fan base.

Early last year, Comcast said that while Xfinity would remain a “premier partner,” its run as title sponsor would end after this season.

That opened the door for O’Reilly, which will gain a major spotlight thanks to NASCAR’s relatively new broadcast partnership with The CW Network. The network is currently in its first full season carrying the series and will showcase the O’Reilly name from coast to coast.

“The success of NASCAR on The CW has shown that millions of fans will consistently tune in for these adrenaline-fueled races every week,” said Brad Schwartz, President, The CW Network. “This exciting new partnership with O’Reilly Auto Parts gives us the opportunity to expand that reach even further by tapping into our mutually strong presence in local communities nationwide and continuing to grow our passionate audience in the years to come.”

And while the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series might not roll off the tongue quite as smoothly as Busch, Nationwide, or Xfinity, at least nobody will ever forget the soundtrack. The jingle department already has that covered. Who knows, perhaps next season the drivers won’t be saying their car was “as fast as Xfinity Wi-Fi” and instead will just start signing. “Oh, oh, oh, O’Reilly…” well, you already know the rest.