23XI Racing Names John Klausmeier First Technical Director Starting in December

23XI Racing has hired John Klausmeier as its first technical director, starting in December, the team announced on Wednesday. Klausmeier joins from Richard Childress Racing, where he held a similar technical position since 2024. The team said he will lead the engineering side of the operation from its Airspeed headquarters in Huntersville, North Carolina.

Klausmeier's Path From Stewart-Haas to 23XI

Klausmeier brings more than two decades of experience to the role, according to Yahoo. His 16 years at Stewart-Haas Racing included crew chief duties for three drivers and three Cup Series wins. Kurt Busch won his first race under Klausmeier in 2016, Aric Almirola took his first Stewart-Haas victory in 2018, and Chase Briscoe earned his maiden Cup win in 2022.

At Richard Childress Racing, Klausmeier oversaw the entire technical operation, including vehicle systems and design. In his new role at 23XI Racing, he will work with crew chiefs to keep the cars competitive, the team said in a statement on X.

Dave Rogers, the team's Senior Director of Competition, said, "We're excited to welcome John to 23XI and look forward to the impact he will have on the organization." Rogers added, "The organization has done a fantastic job of fielding competitive cars each weekend, and this move will help us build on the strong foundation that has been built at Airspeed."

23XI's Season and 2027 Lineup

23XI Racing closed its most successful season to date with eight race wins, 23 top-five finishes, 45 top-10 results and two Crown Jewel victories. Tyler Reddick finished fifth in the 2026 standings and Bubba Wallace finished 11th. The team will field three full-time entries in 2027 for Reddick, Wallace and Corey Heim.

23XI's Recent Leadership and Partnership Moves

According to akta.pro company records, 23XI signed Reddick to a multiyear contract extension in April 2026 during a pre-race broadcast at Talladega. The same records list a June 2026 partnership with Hardee's for a limited-time "Bubba's Full Throttle Meal" promotion and a June 2026 multi-platform Space Jam 30th anniversary campaign with Upper Deck and Warner Bros. Discovery featuring a custom Wallace paint scheme.

Earlier 23XI Racing Moves

In November 2026, Denny Hamlin said he saw no long-term fit for Brad Keselowski in a part-time 23XI car for the 2027 Daytona 500, citing a lack of long-term planning, Yahoo reported. In October 2026, the team swapped pit crew members ahead of the Bank of America 400 at Charlotte, assigning Damian Jackson to Reddick's No. 45 and Brandon Banks to Riley Herbst's No. 35, Yahoo reported. Also in October 2026, Hardee's renewed its multi-year partnership with 23XI and Wallace's No. 23 team, PR Newswire reported.