Jordan Anderson Racing Announces Crew Chief Change for No. 31 Team
Just three races into the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series season, Jordan Anderson Racing has made a change atop the pit box for the No. 31 team. Cody McKenzie will take over as Blaine Perkins’ crew chief, replacing Jeff Kirkendall, starting with this Saturday’s GOVX 200 at Phoenix Raceway.
Kirkendall had been Perkins’ crew chief for the first three races of the season at Daytona International Speedway, Atlanta Motor Speedway, and Circuit of the Americas (COTA). This was his first stint as an Xfinity Series crew chief since 2022, when he led Joe Graf Jr. for a single race at COTA with SS-Green Light Racing. Prior to that, his only previous experience as a crew chief in the series was back in 2010 at Texas Motor Speedway, when he worked with Robert Richardson Jr. and the No. 23 R3 Motorsports team.
Change Comes After Career-Best Performance
The decision to make a crew chief change comes despite Perkins matching his career-best Xfinity Series finish at COTA, where he placed 10th. His previous best result was also 10th, achieved at Martinsville Speedway three years ago while driving for Our Motorsports. Given this recent success, the timing of the move surprised some observers.
McKenzie, who is stepping into the role, has never served as a crew chief in the Xfinity Series before. However, he brings relevant experience, having worked as a race engineer for Big Machine Racing last season, assisting Parker Kligerman and the No. 48 team. Under his engineering support, Kligerman made the playoffs and secured a 10th-place finish in the standings, earning 15 top 10 finishes, including five in the top five.
Perkins currently sits 24th in the Xfinity Series standings after three races. He now heads to Phoenix Raceway, a track where he recorded his best finish of the 2024 season—13th place—while driving for RSS Racing.
