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Biggest free agency signings in NASCAR history
By Zach Sturniolo | Tuesday, September 13, 2022
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Kyle Busch announced he was joining Richard Childress Racing in 2023, ending a 15-year relationship with Joe Gibbs Racing that included 56 Cup Series wins and two championships (2015, '19). Scroll through to see other big free agency signings in NASCAR history.
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Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- DEI to Hendrick Motorsports, 2007-08
Through the early 2000s, it seemed inconceivable Dale Jr. would leave Dale Earnhardt, Inc. That officially changed in June 2007 when he signed to drive for Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 2008, sparking a 10-year partnership that produced nine of his 26 career wins, including a second Daytona 500 victory in 2014.
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Bobby Labonte -- Joe Gibbs Racing to Petty Enterprises, 2005-06
Five years removed from his 2000 NASCAR Cup Series championship, Bobby Labonte decided to leave the famed No. 18 Chevrolet at JGR to drive another famous NASCAR number, wheeling the No. 43 Dodge for Petty Enterprises starting in 2006.
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Jeff Burton -- Roush Racing to Richard Childress Racing, 2004
Jeff Burton excelled in Jack Roush's No. 99 Ford in the late 1990s and early 2000s, collecting 17 wins between 1997 and 2001. But sponsorship at Roush dwindled in 2004, forcing Burton out and swapping midseason to Richard Childress Racing. Burton earned four wins in the team's No. 31 car.
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Kyle Busch -- Hendrick to Joe Gibbs Racing, 2007-08
Busch was always a hot commodity and proved his talents at the Cup level by driving Hendrick Motorsports' No. 5 Chevrolet to four wins. But in 2007, he departed for Joe Gibbs Racing to take over the No. 18 in 2008. With eight races remaining in this 15-year partnership, Busch has won two Cup titles and 56 races, including a victory in April on the Bristol dirt.
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Tony Stewart -- JGR to Stewart-Haas Racing, 2008-09
Stewart was already a 37-time winner and two-time Cup champion with Joe Gibbs Racing. But in 2008, Stewart partnered with Joe Custer (pictured, left) and Gene Haas to form Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009. The move proved fruitful in numerous ways, including another Cup title in 2011.
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Ryan Newman -- Penske Racing to Stewart-Haas Racing, 2008-09
As a new co-owner, Stewart knew who he wanted as his teammate, convincing Newman to leave Penske after seven successful full-time seasons with the organization. After winning the 2008 Daytona 500 and 43 poles with Penske, Newman spent 2009-13 with SHR collecting four wins and eight pole awards, including a victory from the pole in the 2013 Brickyard 400.
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Clint Bowyer -- Richard Childress Racing to Michael Waltrip Racing, 2011-12
Bowyer went to Victory Lane five times in six seasons with RCR but departed for MWR for the 2012 season. He produced immediately, netting three wins in his inaugural season in the No. 15 Toyota and totaled 10 top fives and 23 tops 10s, all career-high marks.
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Matt Kenseth, Roush Fenway Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing, 2012-13
At RFR, Kenseth was a 24-time winner and 2003 champion while driving the No. 17 Ford. But the 2012-13 offseason brought significant change to Kenseth, who departed for the No. 20 Toyota at JGR beginning in 2013. That partnership proved successful immediately with seven wins in 2013 before scoring an additional eight over the next four seasons.
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Joey Logano -- Joe Gibbs Racing to Team Penske, 2012-13
On the other end of Kenseth's transition to the No. 20 car was Logano's departure from it. The highly touted youngster had just two career wins when he left JGR in 2012. Since then, he's won 27 races and the 2018 Cup Series championship in Penske's No. 22 Ford.
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Kevin Harvick -- Richard Childress Racing to Stewart-Haas Racing, 2013-14
Harvick was well established as a seasoned vet by 2013, but his departure from RCR's No. 29 Chevrolet was known by the end of the 2012 season. Joining SHR and crew chief Rodney Childers for the 2014 season proved potent as the duo stormed to the Cup title in their inaugural season. Of his 60 career wins, 37 have come with SHR.
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Martin Truex Jr. -- Michael Waltrip Racing to Furniture Row Racing, 2013-14
Truex was left searching for a ride after NAPA Auto Parts announced it would not return to sponsor his No. 56 Toyota at MWR. The result? A remarkably successful five-year tenure with the No. 78 team that saw Truex win the 2017 championship in addition to 17 of his 31 career victories.
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Carl Edwards -- Roush Fenway Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing, 2014-15
Carl Edwards' long tenure with Roush -- which began in Cup when Burton departed in 2004 -- came to an end after the 2014 season, by then netting 23 wins and two runner-up finishes in the championship standings. On he went to JGR, where he was an instant contender in the No. 19 Toyota and fought for the title as part of the Championship 4 in 2016 in the final race of his Cup career.
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Bubba Wallace -- Richard Petty Motorsports to 23XI Racing, 2020-21
Wallace has driven for two of sport's biggest names in Richard Petty and now Michael Jordan. His signing to 23XI Racing for the 2021 season welcomed Jordan to NASCAR as a team co-owner alongside Denny Hamlin and has scored wins in each of his two seasons with the organization.
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Brad Keselowski -- Team Penske to RFK Racing, 2021-22
After 12 exceptional seasons driving the No. 2 car for Team Penske that resulted in a 2012 title and 34 wins, Keselowski departed to take an ownership stake in the rebranded Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing while shifting to the cockpit of the No. 6 Ford for the 2022 season.
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