Jesse Love says he’s ‘proud’ driving for RCR as anchor sponsor announces return to the organization

Jesse Love praised Whelen Engineering's 'strong commitment' after the family-owned company extended its sponsorship of the No.2 Chevrolet through the 2026 Xfinity Series season. The brand has been associated with Richard Childress Racing since 2022.

Whelen Engineering is a leading brand that manufactures warning equipment for automotive, aviation and mass notification industries. The company used its ties with RCR to raise awareness for programs like National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

After claiming Rookie of the Year honours in 2024, Love is on a stellar playoff run this season. He's next in line to make it through the Round of 8 with a 40-point advantage.

With Whelen returning as the sponsor for his No. 2 Chevrolet, the 20-year-old expressed his excitement and said(via rarracing.com),

“I’m proud to continue my relationship with Richard Childress Racing and Whelen Engineering and look forward to building upon our already strong foundation. Whelen’s strong commitment to motorsports is unmatched. Thank you to Sonny, Geoff, Peter, and everyone at Whelen for their faith in me. My goal is to go out and win races and championships for RCR and Whelen.”

Jesse Love grabbed the Busch Light Pole in his last playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway. However, he lost out to his teammate Austin Hill and finished tenth on the running order.

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"I’m definitely shocked": Jesse Love on his fuel mileage loss to Austin Hill

During last weekend's Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway, Jesse Love was competing with Austin Hill when he ran out of fuel. As a result, Love had to pit and came out with a massive disadvantage.

Adding insult to injury, both teammates were on similar pit strategies, which made the whole ordeal even more frustrating for Love. In a post-race interview, the No.2 driver shared his disappointment and said,

“Obviously, Austin just belt-to-a**’d us. But other than that, you know, I feel like we had a really good day and made the right call. I have a lot of faith in Danny’s pit calls, and I’m definitely shocked. Like, I’m definitely surprised I was running out.”

"That car was so fast in the draft. So, definitely surprised and we’ll look at it, but we did a good job today, kind of just managing possible damage," he added.

Jesse Love will need a minimum of 15 stage points at Martinsville to clear his rivals for Phoenix. JR Motorsports' Carson Kvapil trails him in fourth with 11 points above the cutline, while Connor Zilisch and Justin Allgaier have already secured their finale berths.

Love wrecked out in his previous outing at Martinsville Speedway. Notably, Austin Hill won that race as well, but faced scathing criticism for his aggressive tactics.