Koch joins JD Motorsports' Xfinity team

After a year away, Blake Koch will return to the Xfinity Series to race at JD Motorsports in 2019, taking the seat left open when Ross Chastain announced his move to Chip Ganassi Racing.

Koch was replaced by Ryan Truex at Kaulig Racing for 2018. In two seasons with the team, Koch qualified for the playoffs in both, finishing a career-high seventh in points in 2016. In 2017, he won his first Xfinity pole at Talladega. The 33-year-old drove at least one Xfinity race from 2009 to 2017, including a full-time ride with TriStar Motorsports in 2015.

Though he didn’t race in 2018 Koch has stayed busy, coaching Matt Tifft, Myatt Snyder and Harrison Burton, and he formed FilterTime, a company that automatically sends residential customers HVAC air filters when they need to be changed.

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FilterTime will serve as Koch’s primary sponsor for select races, starting with the season opener at Daytona.

“It’s hard for me to explain how excited I am to race again and to do it for JD Motorsports,” Koch said in a statement. “I have seen the progress of this team and have raced against them for many years. Coming off their best season with Ross making the playoffs, it’s a perfect time to join them.”

Added team owner Johnny Davis: “[Blake] is another overlooked talent that needs an opportunity to race, and we’re happy to have him at our organization.”