NY Racing (NYR) pulled out of the Cook Out 400 just days after it originally stated it would be part of the festivities, which is just the latest chapter in the team’s journey to relevance with J.J. Yeley being one of the main drivers.

This year, NYR has fielded the No. 44 car for 10 races in the 2025 season, with Yeley having driven the car eight times. Derek Kraus and Brennan Poole both took turns in the driver’s seat, with the former registering a 32nd-place finish at the Coca-Cola 600 and the latter coming in 34th at Pocono.

Most recently, Yeley drove the No. 44 car at Watkins Glen, a race which road course star Shane van Gisbergen dominated. However, the team did not see much luck, with the NASCAR veteran finishing 38th.

And now, NYR will not be among those competing at Richmond. When NASCAR originally unveiled the preliminary entry list for the Cook Out 400, NYR was on the list, though they did not have a driver listed, according to Sports Illustrated.

On Tuesday, there was an update to the entry list and instead of featuring 39 cars, the number was down to 38, with NYR withdrawing from Richmond. No reason was given as to why the team pulled out.

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Considering NYR’s success this season, or lack thereof, fans on Reddit pondered what the team’s goals could be by running a car that did not have the same resources as the other competitors.

One fan wrote: “I wonder what their endgame is. Definitely feels like they are not getting much out of this at the moment other than being able to say that they have a Cup team.”

In response, a fan believed that this season was a trial run for NYR as they prove to sponsors that they are able to field a team that could at least end races. “I think they might be trying to show that they can at least finish races to attract sponsorship for a full-time schedule next year,” the fan began.

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“If the lawsuit isn’t over next season and the top six open teams are still locked in every week, I can see Chevrolet trying to get them running full time and funding some other open cars to try and bump FRM/23XI out of the points.”

That said, of the eight times Yeley has driven the No. 44, the only time NYR failed to qualify was at Daytona. Yeley was defeated by Jimmie Johnson, who finished as the top non-chartered driver, passing Yeley’s car on the final lap to cement his spot in the Daytona 500.

After that particular clash, Yeley explained how it felt to be close to qualifying but ultimately falling to Johnson. “But, you know, I just didn’t have quite the pace that those guys did. I was kind of stuck going where the guys in front of me where I couldn’t make anything really happen,” he said at the time.

“So, I just put all my eggs in one basket to run the bottom. Hope that there was a shift going down the back straightaway that was going to slow those guys down. It typically happens. Unfortunately, it did, but just not enough to let me, you know, catapult there into a transfer coming off the fourth.”