Riley Herbst sits 27th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, a gain of eight positions from a year ago, and he admits that arriving at the track before anyone else has become a personal ritual. He says the quiet moments before the crowd files in give him a chance to settle his focus, a habit he developed long before his professional career.
Off‑Road Roots and Late‑Model Ambitions
Growing up amid the dust of off‑road trucks, Herbst recalls weekends spent watching his family’s machines roar across desert tracks. He wishes he had entered more Late Model events as a teenager, believing those races would have sharpened his skill set for the modern Cup schedule.
The 2019 Michigan weekend remains a sore spot; three separate DNFs left him frustrated, but he now treats each debrief as a puzzle rather than a reprimand. He notes that his average running position has jumped by 4.5 spots this season, a statistical testament to incremental gains.
Herbst is surprised to see former off‑road rivals Zane Smith and Noah Gragson sharing the Cup grid, a coincidence that underscores the tight‑knit nature of the sport’s grassroots. He also mentions that he would love to test an IndyCar cockpit, imagining the different demands of oval and road‑course racing.
Beyond the track, he is an avid consumer of U.S. history, having traveled to Washington, D.C. for his 18th birthday, and he admits to finding adult autograph collectors a bit excessive. While he remains tight‑lipped about his next team, he says he will not return to 23XI Racing next year, leaving fans eager to see where his career lands.