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Key figures in 2019-20 NASCAR Silly Season
By Staff Report | Published: 7 Jan, 2020 43
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Zack Albert | NASCAR Digital Media
The NASCAR Silly Season is in full swing. As drivers and teams begin to announce plans for next year, we're keeping running tabs on those who are key players over the next few months of action.
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Team Penske crew chiefs
2019 rides: Paul Wolfe, No. 2 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; Todd Gordon, No. 22 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; Jeremy Bullins, No. 12 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: All three crew chiefs will return to Team Penske but command different Ford drivers. Wolfe is set to now work with Joey Logano and the No. 22 team. Gordon moves over to the No. 12 unit with Ryan Blaney. Bullins then takes control of the Brad Keselowski's No. 2 entry. The road and pit crews will follow their respective crew chiefs to their new positions while the spotters will remain with their current drivers.
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Photo courtesy of Go Fas Racing
Crew chief Ryan Sparks
2019 ride: Race engineer, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Go Fas Racing announced that Sparks will be the crew chief for the No. 32 team and driver Corey LaJoie in 2020, replacing Randy Cox atop the pit box. Sparks had spent 13 seasons at RCR and was part of title-winning teams with Austin Dillon in the Xfinity (in 2013) and Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series (in 2011).
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Crew chief Jerry Baxter
2019 ride: No. 24 GMS Racing Chevrolet crew chief, NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Richard Petty Motorsports announced early January that Baxter will join the organization as crew chief of the No. 43 Chevrolet driven by Bubba Wallace in the NASCAR Cup Series. The duo worked together for two seasons back when Wallace competed in the Gander Truck ranks.
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Chase Briscoe
2019 ride: No. 98 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
2020 outlook: The 2019 Xfinity Series Sunoco Rookie of the Year is back at SHR and should be one of the title contenders in the Xfinity ranks. He won at Iowa Speedway in 2019 and finished fifth in the final standings.
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Hailie Deegan
2019 ride: No. 19 Bill McAnally Racing Toyota in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West.
2020 outlook: Deegan is moving to the Ford driver development program for 2020. She is slated to run a full 20-race season in the ARCA Menards Series as well as select sports-car events in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge for DGR-Crosley.
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Joey Gase
2019 ride: No. 35 Go Green Racing Toyota in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
2020 outlook: Gase will run full time for Rick Ware Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series. A regular in the Xfinity ranks for the past six seasons, Gase has made 41 Cup starts since 2014.
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Courtesy of Joe Gibbs Racing
Crew chief James Small
2019 ride: Lead engineer on No. 19 Toyota with driver Martin Truex Jr., NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Less than two weeks after Cole Pearn surprisingly stepped down as crew chief of the No. 19, Joe Gibbs Racing promoted Small into the open crew chief position. Small, 36, worked with Truex Jr. in some capacity for the past three seasons and brings some familiarity and continuity to one of the best crew chief jobs in NASCAR.
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Crew chief Cole Pearn
2019 ride: No. 19 Toyota with driver Martin Truex Jr., NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Pearn stunned the NASCAR world on Dec. 9 when he announced, via a press release from Joe Gibbs Racing, that he was stepping down as crew chief and away from the sport to spend more time with his family.
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Tanner Gray
2019 ride: No. 15 DGR-Crosley Toyota in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
2020 outlook: The 2018 NHRA Pro Stock Champion continues his transition with a full season ride competing for rookie honors in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series with DGR-Crosley in the No. 15 Ford. He finished third in the Pro Series East and also made three Gander Trucks starts for the organization in 2019.
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DGR-Crosley
2019 ride: Fielded Toyotas in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.
2020 outlook: Fielding Fords in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series. The organization will also run Fords in late models and the ARCA Menards Series.
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John Hunter Nemechek
2019 ride: No. 23 GMS Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: After a three-race fill-in stint at the end of 2019 with Front Row, Nemechek has landed a full season gig with the team in the No. 38 Ford. He will compete for Sunoco Rookie honors in a loaded class with Cole Custer, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick.
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Michael McDowell
2019 ride: No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: McDowell returns for a third season with the two-car organization of Front Row Motorsports. Two of McDowell’s three career top-five finishes in Cup came last year with Front Row.
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Brennan Poole
2019 ride: No. 30 On Point Motorsports Chevrolet, NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Poole will be going to the Cup ranks as he will drive the No. 15 Chevrolet for Premium Motorsports. This will mark his first Cup competition.
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Ty Majeski
2019 ride: One national series start for Niece Motorsports in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.
2020 outlook: Majeski will take over the ride that Ross Chastain piloted to the Championship 4 in the Truck ranks with Niece Motorsports -- the No. 45 Chevrolet.
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Stewart-Haas Racing crew chiefs
2019 rides: Mike Bugarewicz, No. 14 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; Rodney Childers, No. 4 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; John Klausmeier, No. 10 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; Billy Scott, No. 41 Ford, NASCAR Cup Series; Mike Shiplett, No. 00 Ford, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Childers returns to the No. 4 team of Kevin Harvick for the seventh straight season. Bugarewicz will move to the No. 10 team of Aric Almirola while Klausmeier moves to the No. 14 team of Clint Bowyer. Shiplett has been promoted to the No. 41 team with Cole Custer in the NASCAR Cup Series.
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Corey LaJoie
2019 ride: No. 32 Go Fas Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: LaJoie returns to Go Fas Racing, where he posted a career-high two top-10 finishes in 2019. Only this time his team will have a technical alliance with Stewart-Haas Racing.
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Stewart Friesen
2019: No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Chevrolet, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Friesen will be back in the Truck ranks but the organization is shifting to fielding Toyotas in the series. The team will purchase trucks from Kyle Busch Motorsports and have the support of Toyota Racing Development.
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Quin Houff
2019 ride: No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: After a part-time slate in the No. 77, Houff is heading to StarCom Racing as its full-time No. 00 Chevrolet driver for the next two seasons. The 22-year-old driver made 17 Cup starts in 2019.
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Landon Cassill
2019 ride: No. 00 StarCom Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Cassill spent the past two seasons at StarCom, but it will now be Houff in the car. In a statement, StarCom says it has "a commitment to Landon that we plan to honor in 2020. Details to come at a later date."
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Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
2019 ride: No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: JTG Daugherty Racing announced on Oct. 16 that it had signed Stenhouse to a multiyear deal starting with the 2020 Daytona 500. He will pilot the No. 47 Chevrolet while Ryan Preece shifts over to the No. 37. After seven seasons in Cup in the No. 17 Monster Energy Series ride for Roush, Stenhouse will part ways with the team after the 2019 season. He collected two wins for RFR, both in the 2017 season when he also had his best finish of 13th in the standings. Stenhouse also won back-to-back Xfinity Series titles for Roush in 2011 and 2012.
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Cole Custer
2019 ride: No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Custer will take over the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2020. Custer exploded for seven wins and a second straight Championship 4 appearance in the 2019 Xfinity Series season. He has come into his own as a top prospect.
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Daniel Suarez
2019 ride: No. 41 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Suarez confirmed via a Twitter video that he would not return to the No. 41 next season. His current status for next year is unknown.
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Zane Smith
2019 outlook: No. 8 JR Motorsports Chevrolet, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Smith is heading to GMS Racing for his first full-time season in a national series in the No. 21 Chevrolet. He will work with crew chief Kevin "Bono" Manion as part of the organization's four-truck full-time lineup in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series.
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Daniel Hemric
2019 ride: No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Hemric will run 21 (of 33) races in the No. 8 NASCAR Xfinity Series car for JR Motorsports. RCR announced Sept. 17 that it exercised its option to release Hemric at the end of the 2019 season -- his first in the top series.
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Christian Eckes
2019 ride: Part time in No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, and full time in No. 15 Venturini Motorsports Toyota, ARCA Menards Series
2020 outlook: Eckes will drive the No. 18 Safelite Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series. He ran a partial slate for KBM in 2019 and also won the ARCA Menards Series championship. Rudy Fugle will serve as the crew chief.
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Raphael Lessard
2019 ride: Part time in Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Lessard will pilot the No. 4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota full time in the Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series after running three races with KBM in '19. Mike Hillman Jr. will be the crew chief.
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Tyler Ankrum
2019 ride: No. 17 DGR-Crosley Racing Toyota, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Fresh off a Round of 6 run in the postseason, Ankrum will make the move to the No. 26 GMS Racing Chevrolet to be part of a four-truck full-time effort with Zane Smith, Brett Moffitt and Sheldon Creed. Sam Mayer will run a partial schedule for the organization as well.
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Matt Tifft
2019 ride: No. 36 Front Row Motorsports Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Tifft and Front Row announced on Nov. 13 that the driver and team mutually agreed to part ways so that Tifft could focus on his health. The 23-year-old was a rookie in Cup competition in 2019 and posted one top 10 (a ninth-place finish in the summer Daytona race).
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Riley Herbst
2019 ride: Part time in Xfinity Series, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and ARCA Menards Series
2020 outlook: After competing part time in the Xfinity Series No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in 2018-19, Herbst has inked a full-time deal to drive the machine in '20 with sponsorship from Monster Energy, ORCA Coolers and Terrible's.
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Kurt Busch
2019 ride: No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Kurt Busch will return to Chip Ganassi Racing for a multiyear deal to drive the No. 1 Chevrolet with sponsorship from Monster Energy.
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Brandon Jones
2019 ride: No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Joe Gibbs Racing announced on Oct. 31 that Jones will return to JGR for a third season in the organization's Xfinity program. He scored his first series win at Kansas this season.
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Harrison Burton
2019 ride: No. 18 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Joe Gibbs Racing announced on Oct. 17 that Burton would make the move up to the Xfinity Series after a full-time season in the Gander Truck ranks. The son of 21-time Cup winner Jeff Burton will pilot the No. 20 JGR Toyota. The 19-year-old got his feet wet in the Xfinity Series this season.
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Clint Bowyer
2019 ride: No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: SHR confirmed that Bowyer would be back for 2020 on Oct. 17. The veteran has made the playoffs in two of his three seasons for the Tony Stewart-Gene Haas owned organization and will continue to pilot the No. 14 Ford.
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Ross Chastain
2019 ride: No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet, NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series
2020 outlook: Kaulig Racing announced Oct. 15 that Chastain will join the team next year, making the Xfinity Series group a two-car operation. Chastain, who won in a Kaulig Racing car at Daytona in the summer Xfinity Series race, joins Justin Haley and becomes an instant playoff contender.
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Aric Almirola
2019 ride: No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: On Oct. 10, Stewart-Haas Racing announced a renewal of its partnership with Smithfield that will see Almirola return to pilot the No. 10 car in 2020. He has made the playoffs in two seasons with SHR.
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Tyler Reddick
2019 ride: No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Reddick will take over the NASCAR Cup Series ride held by rookie Daniel Hemric in 2019. Reddick came to RCR in 2019 to drive full time in the Xfinity Series after winning the championship the year before at JR Motorsports and successfully defended his title with his new team. Reddick has two Cup starts to his credit, both this season for RCR (Daytona, Kansas).
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Chris Buescher
2019 ride: No. 37 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Roush Fenway Racing revealed Sept. 25 Buescher will take over the No. 17 Ford in 2020. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.'s seven-year run in that ride will come to an end after the 2019 season. Buescher won a NASCAR Xfinity Series title with Roush Fenway Racing in 2015 before moving over to the Cup Series first with Front Row Motorsports and then JTG Daugherty Racing, where he has been the past three seasons.
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Christopher Bell
2019 ride: No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, NASCAR Xfinity Series
2020 outlook: Leavine Family Racing announced on Sept. 24 that Bell was taking over the No. 95 Toyota in 2020. Crew chief Jason Ratcliff is moving up with Bell to the Cup level as well after spending the past two seasons with him in the Xfinity Series. Bell is in the midst of the Xfinity Series Playoffs and had eight wins in 2019.
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Matt DiBenedetto
2019 ride: No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: What a turn of events. DiBenedetto posted on Twitter in early August that Leavine Family Racing would go in a different direction for 2020. It didn't take him long to land elsewhere -- he'll drive the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford next year.
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Paul Menard
2019 ride: 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Menard and Wood Brothers Racing announced the driver would retire after the 2019 season.
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Erik Jones
2019 ride: No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Jones' extension with Joe Gibbs Racing was announced on Sept. 6 -- just days after his Darlington win locked Jones into the NASCAR Playoffs for the second straight season.
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David Ragan
2019 ride: No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford, NASCAR Cup Series
2020 outlook: Ragan announced in August he would step down from full-time NASCAR competition at the end of the season, opening a ride at Front Row Motorsports.