Top 10 NASCAR Cup Series bounce-back candidates for 2024

Following the conclusion of the 2023 season, some competitors may feel like they could have accomplished more on the track.

Take a look at 10 NASCAR Cup Series drivers who are seeking a bounce-back year in 2024 or are looking to improve on last year's results.

Chase Briscoe

Team: No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

2023 stats: 0 wins, 4 top fives, 8 top 10s, 184 laps led

Why Briscoe will bounce back: After making the playoffs and finishing ninth in the 2022 Cup Series standings, the 2023 season was a rough ride for Briscoe in a down year for Stewart-Haas Racing across the board. The L3-level penalty issued to the No. 14 team after Charlotte put them in a tough spot to win and advance into the postseason. Finishing 30th in points does not live up to SHR standards given all their past success winning races and championships. The down year should motivate Briscoe's team to work hard over the offseason to revert to his 2022 form. With Kevin Harvick now retired, some may view Briscoe as the new de facto team leader at SHR.

Daniel Suárez

Team: No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

2023 stats: 0 wins, 3 top fives, 10 top 10s, 48 laps led

Why Suárez will bounce back: In 2022, Suárez earned his first career Cup Series win at Sonoma and made the playoffs for the first time. However, 2023 was a different story as the No. 99 Chevrolet could not find Victory Lane. Trackhouse teammate Ross Chastain won twice in 2023 as Suárez looked on. Changes are on the way in 2024, with Suárez's crew chief Travis Mark departing the organization for Kaulig Racing. Suárez will have a new voice atop the pit box in 2024, with Matt Swiderski becoming the No. 99 team's new crew chief. Maybe the change could help elevate Suárez back into the postseason this year.

Erik Jones

Team: No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota

2023 stats: 0 wins, 1 top five, 7 top 10s, 24 laps led

Why Jones will bounce back: 2023 was a tough campaign for Legacy Motor Club, to say the least. Under the "Petty GMS" banner in 2022, Jones finished 18th in points and earned a surprising victory in the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington. A strong ending to the 2022 season gave this team hope for the future as they transitioned to Legacy M.C. in 2023. Going from 18th to 27th in points certainly is not ideal for a team with bigger aspirations. In 2024, the team will switch from Chevrolet to Toyota. This move reunites Jones with the manufacturer that initally helped him break onto the NASCAR scene. Look for Jones to rekindle some of that old TRD magic and get Legacy M.C. back on track.

Alex Bowman

Team: No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

2023 stats: 0 wins, 4 top fives, 10 top 10s, 89 laps led

Why Bowman will bounce back: Before suffering a fractured vertebra in a sprint crash in April 2023, Bowman was off to a hot start. The driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet picked up six top-10 finishes in the first 10 races and sat ninth in points before he missed the next three points-paying races due to the injury. When he returned to competition, Bowman did not show the same level of performance, only picking up four more top 10s the rest of the year. A 20th-place finish in the 2023 standings will not sit well with the No. 48 team. After resting up over the offseason, Bowman can hit the reset button and try to emulate his strong start last season in 2024.

Austin Cindric

Team: No. 2 Team Penske Ford

2023 stats: 0 wins, 1 top five, 5 top 10s, 33 laps led

Why Cindric will bounce back: Sophomore slumps exist in sports, and that is the perfect way to describe Cindric's 2023 campaign. His first full season in the Cup Series started off with a bang by winning the Daytona 500 in 2022, which earned Cindric a postseason berth. However, the No. 2 team struggled to nab a checkered flag in 2023. Comparing Cindric's first two seasons in the premier series, his average finish dipped from 16.3 to 21.6. If his 2024 performance matches his rookie season or exceeds it, Cindric can write off 2023 as the typical sophomore slump. There will be higher expectations for the Team Penske driver this year, especially when you factor in that both his teammates have won titles the last two seasons. This may give him some extra motivation to turn it up a notch this season.

Kyle Busch

Team: No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

2023 stats: 3 wins, 10 top fives, 17 top 10s, 241 laps led

Why Busch will bounce back: Statistically speaking, Busch did not have a bad year at all in his debut season with RCR. However, winning three times in the first 15 races probably caused expectations to soar. Typically when a driver goes to a new team, you expect to see growing pains before figuring it all out. After winning at Fontana, Talladega and Gateway in 2023, it seemed like Busch and RCR could emerge as serious title contenders. However, as the season went on, Busch struggled to find consistency, finishing 14th in points. With a full season under the RCR umbrella, look for Busch and the No. 8 team to build on the positives from last year and find consistency when it matters the most.

Austin Dillon

Team: No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

2023 stats: 0 wins, 1 top five, 7 top 10s, 19 laps led

Why Dillon will bounce back: Coming off a strong 2022 season of finishing 11th in points, Dillon's No. 3 team took a huge step back in 2023. Dillon tumbled to 29th in the standings. He had an average finish of 21.8, which is the worst of his full-time Cup Series career. With RCR teammate Kyle Busch reaching Victory Lane three times last year, the No. 3 team needs a full reset to keep up with the No. 8 car.

Chase Elliott

Team: No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

2023 stats: 0 wins, 7 top fives, 15 top 10s, 195 laps led

Why Elliott will bounce back: For the first time in his Cup Series career, Elliott did not reach the playoffs in 2023. He missed seven races, with six of those while he recovered from surgery on his broken left leg and one race after a suspension related to an on-track incident at Charlotte. This all made it harder for Elliott to advance to the postseason on points and put more pressure on him to win a race. Elliott still produced respectable results throughout the year despite a 17th-place points finish. Give him a full season without missing any races and the No. 9 team will return to the playoffs in 2024.

Joey Logano

Team: No. 22 Team Penske Ford

2023 stats: 1 win, 11 top fives, 17 top 10s, 308 laps led

Why Logano will bounce back: When you compare Logano's 2022 championship-winning season to his 2023 campaign, he had the same number of top fives and top 10s. The only major difference was four wins in 2022 versus a single trip to Victory Lane in 2023. Going from first to 12th in points after a championship season will certainly cause a feeling of disappointment, but do not be surprised if Logano wins multiple races and makes a deep playoff run this season. 

Martin Truex Jr.

Team: No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

2023 stats: 3 wins, 9 top fives, 17 top 10s, 899 laps led

Why Truex will bounce back: The No. 19 team started off the year strong by claiming the 2023 Regular Season Championship. However, starting strong is one thing but finishing is another. After a sixth-place finish at Watkins Glen in the penultimate race of the 2023 regular season, Truex went the next seven races without a top-10 finish. In the 2023 playoffs, Truex only finished in the top 10 twice. This pretty much ruined the No. 19 team's momentum and halted what could have been a championship-winning season. Returning to JGR in 2024, Truex and his squad will need to finish strong if they want to make a Championship 4 return. If that happens, they could be a threat to claim the 2024 title.