Ross Chastain has always been the kind of driver who pushes his limits without fear. His ‘Hail Melon’ at Martinsville in 2022 was the proof. But not everyone in the garage has cheered his aggressive style.

Back in 2023, tensions boiled over when Chastain’s hard racing led to a crash with Kyle Larson at Darlington, drawing sharp words from Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick, leaving talks of a lasting rift between these two Chevy powerhouses. But despite that rumored bad blood, a recent unexpected gesture by Rick Hendrick shut down talks of that bad blood.

Ex-HMS crew chief to team up with Ross Chastain

As shared in an X post by Kelly Crandall, Ross Chastain will team up with Brandon McSwain as his crew chief starting in 2026. McSwain, a Hendrick Motorsports veteran, brings fresh expertise from his time engineering William Byron’s No. 24 car since 2019. This marks his first full-time Cup gig, after part-time stints like crew chiefing Byron JRM in 2017.

The move breaks from Trackhouse’s alliance with Richard Childress Racing, signaling a bold shift to inject new strategy into Chastain’s average 2025 season with only one win.

Ross Chastain will be paired with a new crew chief, Brandon McSwain, next season in the Cup Series. McSwain is set to join the 1 group from Hendrick Motorsports: https://t.co/57XcxZx0uK

— Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) October 27, 2025

Under current crew chief Phil Surgen, who’s guided Chastain since 2022, the pair notched six victories, including the 2025 Coca-Cola 600 from the bottom position on the grid. Yet consistency was difficult. Chastain is currently sitting at 11th in points, plagued by mid-pack finishes despite raw speed. Which is why Trackhouse sees McSwain’s data-driven approach as the fix, especially with the Next Gen car’s demands focusing more on the engineering approach over raw skill.

This crew chief change makes Hendrick‘s role here more highlighted, given the 2023 feud sparked by Chastain’s Darlington tangle with Larson. That time, Hendrick didn’t hold back, telling reporters, “If you wreck us, you’re going to get it back. I don’t care if he’s driving a Chevrolet if he wrecks our cars.”

His words stemmed from a season of clashes at Dover, Talladega, and Darlington, where it cost Larson three shots at wins, making Hendrick change his praise for Chastain into a warning that the latter’s behavior was earning him more rivals than friends.

Chastain also fired back humbly, admitting, “I got really tight, drove up, and turned myself… I wanted to squeeze him (Larson). I wanted to push him up… but definitely didn’t want to turn myself into the wall.” That night at Darlington, with Larson leading and Chastain charging from 20th, the contact sent both spinning on the final lap, costing Larson a sure victory.

Chastain’s temper cooled down that time, but the scar lingered. But Hendrick green-lighting McSwain’s jump as crew chief of Chastain may be seen as a quiet nod to burying that old feud once and for all.

Meanwhile, Chastain’s offseason reflections didn’t stop at team tweaks. His thoughts on a fellow Chevy star added another layer.

Chastain’s warm nod to Byron’s big night

William Byron‘s dominant Martinsville win locked him into the final 4, leading 304 of 500 laps and holding off Ryan Blaney, who charged strategically. For Chastain, finishing fourth that night, just outside playoffs, it was a mix of envy and genuine hype for Byron’s breakthrough. With Byron passing Blaney on lap 456, it was sealed.

Chastain captured the moment perfectly post-race, saying, “I think we just watched William Byron cement himself into the championship race. As a kid, I remember watching the No. 24 car win and dominate here. To be buddies with William now, I saw at the end of the race a guy go and solidify himself in that car for a very long time, not that there was any question about that.”

Growing up idolizing Jeff Gordon‘s No. 24 legacy, Chastain saw Gordon’s shadow in Byron’s driving. That’s the kind of drive Chastain chases, using that old bond with Byron as motivation for himself.

He doubled down on the team angle too: “Really cool for Chevrolet to go do that and beat the No. 12 car here. At a flat track, it’s hard to do these days, but the No. 24 car just flat-out drove by him on the long run and held him off on the short run at the end. As a friend, that was really, really cool to watch.”

Chevy’s playoff drought at Martinsville since 2011 made Byron’s edge over Blaney a statement that Trackhouse and Hendrick were united in blue oval pride. Chastain’s candor shows his growth, cheering rivals while eyeing his own 2026 charge.