Once a driver departs a race team, it’s rare that they ever return to that organization. Anthony Alfredo, however, knew Our Motorsports felt like home following a stressful 2023 season with BJ McLeod Motorsports.
Alfredo considered the 2023 NASCAR season to be among the toughest years of his life. Not only was cracking the top 15 considered an overachievement, but his team competed with only four cars all season long. He had to go to the extreme in trying to take care of his equipment, and sometimes that meant sacrificing a good day’s work. Despite the pitfalls, he still placed inside the top 20 in the Xfinity Series driver’s standings, while the No. 78 team leaped 11 positions in the owner’s standings from 2022.
“The 78 was outside the top 30 when I got in it, and then I was top 20 in driver points. I’m proud of that and what [BJ McLeod Motorsports] accomplished,” Alfredo told Jayski.com of his 2023 campaign. “To some people, that might look like you’re a 20th-place driver when that was a win for that organization. We might as well make the playoffs at that point.”
Chris Our, owner of Our Motorsports, knew what Alfredo was capable of after his first stint with the organization in 2022. He barely missed the postseason when resources were spread thin across three full-time teams.
Prior to Alfredo rejoining the team, Our had a deal go awry, placing the car owner in a tricky situation. His next call was Alfredo, attempting to get the band back together.
“I knew Anthony had struggled last year, and so did we,” Our said. “He ran so well with us before, so I reached out to him to see if he had some interest. I think he was pretty ecstatic that I reached out.”
With Alfredo retaining the majority of his sponsors from his first run with Our, it was an easy sell to his partners. It also marked the first time he would run a second season with a team, though not in consecutive years.
“We ran really well in 2022 and had some unfinished business together, as we both really want to win a race,” Alfredo said. “We’re trying to score our first win and I feel like this is the right place to do it: together. Scaling down to a single-car team has already proven its benefits, just really focused with all of our eggs in one basket.”
Our agreed that “unfinished business” is the team’s motto for 2024.
“Anthony wanted to do well; I want to do well. If we’re not competitive, I don’t enjoy it and I don’t want to do it,” Our said, simply. “Together, we felt like we could put something together with the equipment we have. We’re probably in the best shape we’ve ever been in right now with the crew and people. We want to go at it and prove that we can run well.”
Alfredo wanted a fresh start by rejoining the team. Knowing the No. 5 was available in the number portal, Keith Barnwell, newly appointed general manager of Our Motorsports, made a call to see if Alfredo could use it. Not only is it Alfredo’s favorite number, but he won numerous races and a championship in late models while utilizing the number.
Josh Graham made the transition from Jordan Anderson Racing to Our Motorsports to serve as Alfredo’s crew chief for the 2024 season. It was the first time since 2021 that Alfredo needed to adjust to a new voice on the radio after spending the previous two seasons with longtime crew chief Pat Tryson.
“The biggest thing for us was spending time together in the shop as much as we could over the offseason so when we got to Daytona, we had an idea of how we communicate and our personas,” Alfredo said. “I feel like we hit it off right away.”
The small team, consisting of a maximum of 12 employees, functions better as a one-car operation, Barnwell believes. It doesn’t have an alliance with any Cup Series teams, but it does lease ECR Engines. When it comes to aerodynamics and setting the car up mechanically, it falls on Graham, who has spent time at multiple organizations, including JR Motorsports.
Through the first six events in 2024, the reconnection between driver and team has gone according to plan. Alfredo matched his top 10 total from 2023 in the first month of the season alone. He currently holds the final playoff spot, one point ahead of Supercars veteran Shane van Gisbergen.
“We’ve already proven a lot, but we want to keep improving and keep backing up those performances by being a playoff contender,” Alfredo said. “We’ve had some good finishes, but there’s a lot of stuff that I could clean up. It goes back to execution.”
Alfredo and the team think they can be a fringe playoff squad all season long.
“[Alfredo is] ready to have that season where we hang around,” Barnwell said, “and at the end of the year, we’re either the bubble guy or the guy that snuck in or fighting for the position to get into the playoffs at the end of the regular season.”
Up next is a visit to Martinsville Speedway, where Alfredo tied his best finish of the 2023 season last fall.