On April 11, 2021, Earnhardt Jr. hinted that JR Motorsports may move up to the Cup Series, given the proposed savings associated with the debut of the Next Gen car in 2022. The challenges for the team are acquiring a charter and securing sponsorship for a Cup program. On August 24, 2022, Director of Competition Ryan Pemberton parted ways with JR Motorsports after working with the team since 2012. On September 1, Mike Bumgarner was announced as Pemberton's replacement. Xfinity Series Car No. 1 history Elliott Sadler (2016–2018) It was announced in late 2015 that Elliott Sadler would drive the new No. 1 OneMain Financial Chevy, replacing Chase Elliott as he moved up to take over the No. 24 replacing Jeff Gordon. Sadler started the season with a fourth-place finish in the season opener at Daytona. He would win three races in 2016 and ended up finishing second in the overall standings after a controversial restart with less than ten laps remaining at Homestead that cost Sadler and his teammate, Justin Allgaier, a shot to win the title. In 2017, Sadler didn't win a race but ended up finishing 2nd in points behind only teammate William Byron. Michael Annett (2019–2021) On September 25, 2018, Noah Gragson was announced as the new driver of the No. 1 after Sadler announced his retirement earlier that year; However, on January 25, 2019, it was announced that Michael Annett would drive the No. 1 car with the points from the 5 car going over to the 1 car while Gragson would drive the No. 9 car. Annett scored his first career victory at Daytona International Speedway in the NASCAR Racing Experience 300. Annett returned to JRM in 2020 and qualified for the playoffs. He was eliminated after the first round. In July 2021, Annett missed the races at Atlanta and New Hampshire due to a stress fracture in his right femur. Austin Dillon served as his replacement in the No. 1 for Atlanta, while Josh Berry did so for New Hampshire. On October 6, 2021, Annett announced his retirement from Full Time racing. Sam Mayer (2022–present) Sam Mayer was announced the new full-time driver of the No. 1 on January 4, 2022. He started the season with a 30th place finish at Daytona and scored four top-five finishes in the first 10 races. On May 3, crew chief Taylor Moyer was suspended for four