Brandon Jones is staying put.
Joe Gibbs Racing announced Tuesday that Jones, a native of Atlanta, Ga. will return to the No. 19 Toyota Supra next season in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
2021 will mark Jones’s fourth season with Joe Gibbs Racing and easily makes them a championship favorite next year.
Tuesday’s announcement falls as Jones advanced to the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs following a 10th place finish at the Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway ROVAL.
This year has been a breakout year for the 23-year-old earning a career-high three wins (Phoenix, Kansas and Darlington), a pole at Auto Club (Calif.) Speedway, nine top-five and 16 top-10 finishes.
“This has been a dream season so far and I couldn’t be prouder of our 19 team,” stated Brandon Jones. “It’s been great to have Jeff Meendering as my crew chief for the second consecutive year and his leadership along with the consistency is exactly what this team needed.
“I also realize how fortunate I am to have partners like Menards and Toyota; their support means the world to me. This has been a phenomenal year and I couldn’t be more excited about being back at Joe Gibbs Racing next season. Right now, I remain focused on our championship run and making it to Phoenix where I won earlier this year for a shot at the Xfinity Series title.”
Jones also scored his first career NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series victory in June at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway, delivering two top-10 finishes in three starts so far in 2020. He is scheduled for his final Truck start of the year later this month at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
JGR team owner Joe Gibbs says he is looking forward to having Jones continue his role in the Xfinity Series.
“It has been a real thrill to watch Brandon’s development over the past few years with us in the Xfinity Series,” said Joe Gibbs, owner of Joe Gibbs Racing. “He is a Championship contender of course and his veteran leadership has been a real asset to our overall program.
“We’re excited about the opportunity he has the rest of this year and that he will return next season and continue to build upon that success.”
Jones enters the semi-final round of the Xfinity Series Playoffs this weekend at Kansas Speedway sixth in the championship standings, 40 markers behind leader Chase Briscoe.
Back-to-back wins in Saturday night’s Kansas Lottery 300 will propel Jones into the Championship 4 round at Phoenix (Ariz.) Raceway on Nov. 7.
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
