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Brenden 'Butterbean' Queen joins Kaulig Ram Trucks for 2026 NASCAR Truck Series season

JHby: Jonathan Howard10/16/25Jondean25
Brenden Butterbean
Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Are we seeing the future of the Stellantis NASCAR brand? Brenden “Butterbean” Queen is going truckin’ with Ram and Kaulig. The Kaulig Trucks team has announced Queen as the first of their full-time drivers for 2026.

Butterbean Queen just won the 2025 ARCA Menards Series championship. He is closing out the Xfinity Series season with Kaulig Racing in the No. 11 Chevy. But for 2026, he’s racing for Ram Trucks. This is a great move for the driver, the team, and the manufacturer.

Butterbean fits the mold for what this Kaulig Trucks needs to be. Ram is coming back to the sport and is trying to be that grassroots, blue-collar brand once again. Butterbean is about as blue-collar as it gets in NASCAR these days, and he has the accent to match.

Kaulig Trucks made the announcement this morning. Who will join him in a Ram next season?

With eight wins in the ARCA Menards Series this season, Butterbean Queen has shown that he has the talent to succeed. Stellantis is entering NASCAR again with Ram Trucks. To put Queen in this seat, that is a lot of faith in what he has to offer this manufacturer.

Who knows, if everything works out, maybe Butterbean is the first driver announced to the new Dodge Cup Series team in 2027 or 2028. Kaulig Racing is definitely hoping to become a Dodge team in the future and ideally, to be the premier partner of Dodge in that scenario.

I think that this move shows that Ram Trucks is serious about succeeding. They could have chased the money and sponsorship, but Butterbean Queen is a legitimate talent. He doesn’t have the deepest pockets, but Ram claims they are more or less footing the bill for these five Truck Series teams.

Butterbean Queen making move to Truck Series

Clearly, Kaulig Racing believes in Butterbean Queen. His Top 10 run at Kansas in the No. 11 Xfinity Series car was impressive. I’d argue the P20 at Bristol was also impressive. But the Truck Series offers pros and cons for Queen next season.

Corey Heim is not going to race full-time at Tricon Garage next season. At least, that’s reportedly not the plan. So, the space is opening up. Already as I’m typing this, I am getting excited about the future battles we could see between Queen and Layne Riggs next season.

Queen has proven himself in the CARS Tour and in ARCA. He has already shown flashes in his limited NASCAR starts. Picking a 27-year-old like Butterbean who has real-life experience is a smart move. He can help guide this organization and help it develop into something better.

I’m not sure what kind of expectations to have for Butterbean Queen and the Ram Trucks group. Daytona will be here before we know it.