Hendrick engineer to become Ross Chastain’s new crew chief in 2026

There will be a change atop the pit box for the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Team Chevrolet next season. Brandon McSwain, who has worked as an engineer for the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team for the past six years, will replace Phil Surgen.

Chastain has worked with Surgen since the 2021 season when he still drove for Chip Ganassi Racing, and has won all six of his Cup races with the same crew chief. The duo nearly won the 2022 Cup Series championship, and most recently earned a crown jewel victory in the 2025 Coca-Cola 600.

They made the playoffs in three of the last four years, and ended the 2025 season tenth in the final championship standings.

Surgen will transition to a new role within the organization, per Trackhouse.

McSwain has limited crew chief experience, filling in for Rudy Fugle at HMS on a few occasions. The No. 24 Chevrolet of Byron has made it all the way to the Championship 4 in the last three consecutive years.

This continues a trend at Trackhouse as they continue to make internal changes, including crew member swaps and a new president of racing operations. The organization has struggled overall this year in comparison to previous seasons, excluding the dominance of Shane van Gisbergen on road and street courses.

McSwain was also a part of JR Motorsports before joining Hendrick, and was a member of the 2017 and 2018 championship-winning team with Byron and then Tyler Reddick.

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