Nick Sanchez's NASCAR career has reached a crossroads. The O'Reilly Auto Parts Series driver now has to search for a new ride after AM Racing ceased its operation ahead of the Dover race weekend.

Rumors about this had begun after the team pulled out of the Rockingham race at the end of March, but the latest confirmation means no good for Sanchez's future.

NASCAR insider Matt Weaver shared the news on X, cementing the truth about AM Racing. He wrote, "VP/comp Matthew Lucas told employees that he made efforts to stabilize AMR, but the inability to continue normal business activity eventually resulted in its closure."

Tim Self founded AM Racing in December 2015 and has been fielding cars in NASCAR for the past decade. After seven years in the Truck Series, the organization stepped up in the Xfinity Series (now O'Reilly Auto Parts Series) in 2023.

They continued their campaign with several names and came into the limelight for having Austin Wayne, Harrison Burton, and Hailie Deegan in their ranks. However, they last competed with Sanchez before closing the team.

Nick Sanchez drove the #25 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, and the 2026 NFPA 250 at Martinsville was his last race for the team. He arrived at AM Racing after his full-time deal with Big Machine Racing came to a sudden stop at the end of 2025.

Consequently, AM Racing, which was set to receive an operational and financial overhaul by Sigma Performance Services' takeover, offered Sanchez a seat. But Sigma's acquisition of AM Racing didn't go through ahead of 2026, and once again, the 24-year-old racer is without a NASCAR seat.

When Nick Sanchez shared his thoughts after Big Machine Racing drop

At the end of the 2025 NASCAR season, Big Machine Racing announced that it would not return with Nick Sanchez as its driver. The decision came despite Sanchez delivering a victory at Atlanta in his rookie season.

"I think it made it easier because I knew it wasn’t about Nick, the race car driver," Sanchez told Jayski.com about the split. "It was a business decision. At the end of the day, these race teams don’t fund themselves. It would be ignorant of me to be mad."

"I surely wasn’t happy, but I understand it. It’s a business, and someone came in with a bigger check. He’s probably a great guy, but I know he doesn’t have the credentials or capability that I have as a racecar driver. Every team needs to sit down and think of what their goals and aspirations are. They made their bed and did what they wanted to do," Sanchez further added.

Nick Sanchez has 48 races to his name in O'Reilly, picking up a win and 14 top tens. A former ARCA Menards Series champion with REV Racing in 2021, he has 42 races and four wins to his name in that series, and also 47 races and two wins under his belt in the NASCAR Truck Series.

Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!

Written by

Sabyasachi Biswas

Edited by

Yask Kotak