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End-of-season goodbyes: 2018 edition
By Steve Luvender | Published: November 21, 2018 27
Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
When the checkered flag flew at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday, not only did we crown a new champion, it also marked the last time we'll see a few people and things in NASCAR — some well-publicized, and some you may not have realized.
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Per 2019 NASCAR rules, drivers will no longer have the ability to make trackbar adjustments from inside their cars — a feature implemented in 2015.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Beginning in 2019, a new baseline rules package replaces cars' current configurations at most tracks over a mile in length, a project aimed at improving competition. The old package, which used a larger tapered spacer, made its final laps in Miami.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
The Ford Fusion, which made its first NASCAR laps in 2006, will be replaced by the Mustang in 2019. The Fusion went out on top, however, winning its first — and final — championship in 2018 with Joey Logano and Team Penske.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
In celebration of Sonoma Raceway's 50th anniversary, the track will return to its original 12-turn, 2.52-mile configuration for the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race, replacing the shortened version raced in NASCAR since 1998.
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Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Since Team Hendrick's rookie hotshot Jimmie Johnson set foot in his No. 48 Chevrolet full-time in 2002, he's won at least two races every single season — that is, until this year's checkered flag fell at Homestead-Miami Speedway. For the first time ever, the seven-time champ didn't make it to Victory Lane at some point in the season, ending his streak at 16 consecutive years with a victory.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Perhaps the most successful crew chief and driver pairing in NASCAR history ended at the conclusion of the 2018 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. Chad Knaus, who led Jimmie Johnson to seven championships and 81 race victories, moves to the No. 24 team with William Byron in 2019. JR Motorsports crew chief Kevin Meendering will pair up with Johnson.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Denny Hamlin stepped into an underperforming No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing car in 2005, taking the reins full time as a rookie in 2006. Since then, he'd won at least one race each season — an impressive 12-year streak. It closed at Homestead-Miami Speedway when the 2018 season ended without a mark in the win column for Hamlin.
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The man for whom Denny Hamlin once said, "He's my guy and he's going to be my guy until I retire" -- crew chief Mike Wheeler -- splits from Hamlin and the No. 11 team. The pairing, which yielded five wins, made its final laps together in Miami.
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With Matt DiBenedetto heading to Leavine Family Racing in 2019, his two-year tenure at Go Fas Racing ended at Homestead. DiBenedetto scored three top-10 finishes for the underdog team.
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Leavine Family Racing made its final laps fielding a Chevrolet in 2018. The team switches to Toyota beginning in 2019.
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2002 Rookie of the Year Ryan Newman joined Richard Childress Racing in 2014, nearly winning a title in the first year of the relationship. The five-year partnership netted the No. 31 a total of 63 top-10 finishes and a victory at ISM Raceway in 2017. Newman departs for Roush Fenway Racing, while Daniel Hemric moves up from the Xfinity Series to fill the vacancy.
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The 2016 Xfinity Series champion will have a new home in 2019. Daniel Suarez joined Joe Gibbs Racing's No. 19 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team following Carl Edwards' sudden retirement after the 2016 season, but won't return to the organization next year -- meaning his final laps behind the wheel of the No. 19 Toyota Camry took place at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
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After three seasons as a crew chief for the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, Matt Puccia will be replaced by Scott Graves, former Joe Gibbs Racing crew chief, atop the No. 6 pit box in 2019.
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The 2018 championship race marked the final race for 2017 series champs Furniture Row Racing. The Colorado-based team owned by Barney Visser came up just one position short of winning back-to-back titles with Martin Truex Jr. and crew chief Cole Pearn, who both move to Joe Gibbs Racing in 2019. Fittingly, the team that sunsets after '18 won 18 races in its existence that started with humble beginnings in 2005, Kenny Wallace behind the wheel.
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Jerry Markland | Getty Images
Alpine, California's Cole Whitt made his final start in 2018, hanging up the helmet at Age 27 after driving for TriStar Motorsports.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Matt Kenseth, who didn't return to Joe Gibbs Racing following the 2017 season, partnered with his former Roush Fenway Racing team -- an organization for which he won a championship in 2003 — to run a part-time schedule in the No. 6 car. With a new driver moving to the team full-time, and the 46-year-old expressing no interest in running the full tour, it appears Kenseth's sixth-place finish in the No. 6 at Homestead may be his last hurrah behind the wheel.
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After more than a decade racing in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, AJ Allmendinger finds himself without a ride following the 2018 season. The road-course specialist earned his lone victory at Watkins Glen in 2014. Ryan Preece moves to the No. 47 Chevrolet for JTG Daugherty Racing, while The Dinger's plans remain up in the air.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images for NASCAR
Trevor Bayne, the 2011 Daytona 500 winner, will not return to Roush Fenway Racing in 2019, ending a frustrating season in which Bayne was pulled from his seat in order to make room for Matt Kenseth, who ran a limited schedule to evaluate the team. With few seats available, it seems unlikely Bayne returns to a full-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series ride after the 2018 season.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
18-time race winner Kasey Kahne announced he's hanging up the helmet -- at least in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series -- following the 2018 season. Kahne, whose final race victory came in the 2017 Brickyard 400, missed the final 11 races of 2018 with health concerns.
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Twitter: @The_ChrisMyers
FOX Sports announced the creation of a massive new studio for its NASCAR coverage -- which also spells the end of the mobile "Hollywood Hotel" broadcast studio that was an at-track fixture for many years.
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Twitter: @MRNRadio
Longtime radio announcer Joe Moore called his final race in the 2018 season, ending a 35-year career with MRN.
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Gerardo Mora | NBC Sports
Mike Wells, a director at NBC Sports for nearly four decades, directed his final race in 2018. NBC Sports paid tribute to Wells' impressive career, which included winning 21 Emmy awards, during the Talladega Superspeedway race broadcast in October.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Spencer Gallagher is shifting from his driving role to a managerial role with GMS Racing. The 28-year-old announced his decision to retire following the 2018 season in October. He has 120 national series starts to his name with one win.
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Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
While not relevant to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, it’s worth bidding adieu to the Xfinity Series "Zombie Dodge" -- a non-factory-supported Dodge race car body. Several low-budget teams purchased old, used Dodge equipment from organizations like Team Penske, which switched from Dodge to Ford in 2013. The Xfinity Series mandates flange-fit composite bodies beginning in 2019 -- none of which bear the Dodge name -- meaning the end of the road for the vehicle.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Brett Moffitt hoisted the final trophy that read "Camping World" for the NASCAR Truck Series in 2018. Sister company Gander Outdoors takes over the naming rights for the Truck Series beginning in 2019.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Longstanding Hendrick Motorsports sponsor Lowe's Home Improvement made its final appearance at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 2018. Jimmie Johnson's car will sport Ally Financial colors moving forward.