Erik Jones 2026 Report Card: A Michigan 2nd and a C+
Welcome to the Happy Hour Racing 2026 Season Report Cards, where every full-time Cup Series driver gets a grade computed from all 36 races, not opinion. Next up: the number 43, and a summer that peaked in June.
The Short Version
Erik Jones was a steady top-20 driver for most of 2026 and had a real hot streak in June, finishing 2nd at Michigan and 6th at Pocono. Then August hit. A crash at Iowa, a transaxle failure at New Hampshire and a late wreck at Daytona sank the second half of his year, and he finished 23rd in points. His computed season grade is a C+, 22nd of 35 full-time drivers, and Legacy Motor Club still signed him to a multiyear extension in September.
Why the Erik Jones 2026 Grade Is a C+
Every HHR report card grade comes from the same math. After every race, each driver gets a score out of 100 based on where they finished in the field, how many spots they gained or lost from the start, how many laps they led, and a penalty for not finishing. The season grade is the average of all 36 race scores, curved against the 35 drivers who ran the full year.
Jones' season score ranked 22nd of 35, which lands at C+. His 20.7 average finish ranked 23rd. He finished 20th or better in 16 races and gained an average of 1.0 spot per race, 9th best in the field.
The grade is held back by speed. He led 23 laps all year, 25th of 35, and his 93 fastest laps ranked 26th. The No. 43 was usually a car that raced its way forward from a mid-pack start, not one that ran up front.
Erik Jones by the Numbers
Here is where Jones ranked among the 35 full-time drivers in 14 stats. The bar and the circle show his rank (1 is best). The number on the right is the actual stat.
The consistency section is the strength. Jones ranked 9th in positions gained (+1.0), 14th in finish spread and 16th in DNFs (4). He was 17th in lead lap finishes with 21.
The rest of the card sits in the 20s. He ranked 21st in top 5s (2), 25th in top 10s (5), 23rd in average driver rating (61.8) and 23rd in average running position (20.4). He spent 28% of his laps inside the top 15, 22nd in the field.
June Was the High Point
Jones opened the year with a 21st in the Daytona 500 and a 34th at COTA, then settled in. He finished 10th at Phoenix and 10th at Darlington in March, and by late May he was stringing together top 15s, including a 12th at Texas, where he led 13 laps, and an 11th at Nashville.
Michigan on June 7 was his best day of the season. He finished 2nd to Denny Hamlin in a race with a record 11 cautions. Hamlin won by more than 11 seconds, but Jones made it clear the result was earned. "It's not we fluked into second, we were running up here all day," he told Speed Sport. A week later he ran 6th at Pocono, and on July 12 he finished 5th at Atlanta.
Through 18 races his average finish was 17.5, more than three spots better than his full-season number.
Three Straight Bad Breaks in August
The season turned in August, and most of it was out of his hands.
- Iowa, Aug. 9: on lap 4, Tyler Reddick's car got loose while passing him and slid into Jones' door. He was out on lap 13 and finished 35th.
- New Hampshire, Aug. 23: a transaxle failure ended his day. He finished 33rd.
- Daytona, Aug. 29: with a few laps left, he was caught in a crash that started when Carson Hocevar lost control. He finished 39th.
Those came in three of the last four races before the Chase field was set, and Jones did not make the 16-driver field. His average finish over the final 18 races was 23.8, and he added one more crash at Talladega in October after leading 6 laps.
What 2027 Looks Like
On Sept. 27, Legacy Motor Club announced a multiyear extension that keeps Jones in the No. 43 Toyota for 2027 and beyond. Terms were not disclosed. Justin Alexander was his crew chief for all 36 races in 2026. The team, owned primarily by Jimmie Johnson, is in its fourth season with Toyota in 2027, and Josh Berry joins as his teammate in the No. 42. Track every move on our 2027 silly season tracker.
The 2027 Daytona 500 is Feb. 21. Start times and channels for every race are on our race TV guide, and every other driver's grade is on the 2026 report cards page.
The Bottom Line
Jones' first half was the best stretch of his year, and three bad weeks in August undid it. The C+ reflects a driver who gains spots and keeps his car clean but rarely runs up front. Legacy is betting on the Michigan version of Erik Jones, and the team will need more days like that one in 2027.
Gear Up for 2027
We do not have Erik Jones gear in stock right now. These are the easiest ways to keep the shirts and hats coming through the offseason.
- Winner's Circle Shirt Subscription
- NASCAR Fan Cap Subscription
- Pit Stop Surprise Subscription
- The newest NASCAR gear
Sources: NASCAR official race results and loop data for all 36 2026 points races; Michigan via Speed Sport and Motorsport.com; Iowa via LastCar.info; Daytona via Motorsport.com; extension via RACER, Jayski and AP; Legacy's Toyota switch via RACER and NASCAR.com.
