Bob Pockrass
FOX NASCAR Insider
With the offseason almost over, here’s a team-by-team look at what their 2025 draft might look like.
As discussions continue, these ratings/opinions will change and we will keep you informed.
Here’s how I look at things since Jan. 2 and the announcement that Zane Smith will be joining Front Row Motorsports.
Joe Gibbs Racing
11: Denny Hamlin is signed through at least next year. Chris Gayle will come from Ty Gibbs’ car to become Hamlin’s chief of staff. The rest of his team will remain the same.
19: Chase Briscoe will replace Martin Truex Jr. next year, the group announced on Tuesday. Chief of staff James Small will remain with the team.
20: Christopher Bell is signed for at least next year and no changes are expected.
54: Ty Gibbs is the grandson of the team owner and is expected to ride as long as the team has Joe Gibbs active. Tyler Allen, who won the Xfinity Series with multiple drivers for JGR in 2024 with eight wins, will be the crew chief for Gibbs.
Denny Hamlin said the 23XI will have a Cup car ready for Martin Truex Jr.
Hendrick Motorsports
5: Kyle Larson is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
9: Chase Elliott is signed for at least next year and no changes are expected.
24: William Byron is signed for at least next year and no changes are expected.
48: Alex Bowman is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
23XI Race
23: Bubba Wallace has signed a multi-year contract extension, the team announced on September 18. He will have a new chief of staff as Charles Denike will step down as chief of staff for Christian Eckes at Wallace Trucks, and Bootie Barker will move to the shop and possibly become chief of staff either on a part-time basis. the fourth.
35: Riley Herbst was named the driver of the car on November 20th, which is no surprise as he has been penciled in for the ride since the summer. He will bring with him Davin Restivo from his Stewart-Haas Xfinity car as Monster’s chief of personnel and sponsorship. The team will hold a charter from SHR pending any decision by the US Court of Appeals regarding the approval of the transfer of the charter and the current ruling that is part of the 23XI/Front Row Motorsports lawsuit against NASCAR.
45: Tyler Reddick is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
TBA: Don’t be surprised if the organization gets a fourth car from time to time for Corey Heim, their replacement driver who also competes full time in trucks.
Team Penske
2: Austin Cindric is signed for at least next year and no changes are expected.
12: Ryan Blaney is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
22: Joey Logano is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
FINAL CONTENTS: Joey Logano defends his third NASCAR Cup Series title
RFK race
6: Brad Keselowski owns it and is expected to return with this car next year. Matt McCall will not return as chief of staff. Jeremy Bullins, who won Xfinity titles with Keselowski and was most recently Harrison Burton’s Cup crew chief, will be the crew chief.
17: Chris Buescher is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
60 (charter leased from Rick Ware Racing): RFK Racing announced on November 19 that it will add a third car for Ryan Preece with Kroger sponsorship. It will be chartered by Rick Ware Racing for this entry. Kroger has been a sponsor of Chris Buescher and Preece, and had a good relationship with both when they drove for JTG Daugherty Racing. No chief of staff for Preece has been announced.
Trackhouse Racing
1: Ross Chastain is signed for at least next year and no changes are expected.
99: Daniel Suarez has signed a contract extension that will keep him on the bench next year, the club announced on August 9.
88 (document obtained from SHR): Trackhouse announced Aug. 24 that Shane van Gisbergen will compete fully in the Cup Series in 2025. He is running several Cup races this year for Kaulig Racing, the organization he drives full-time in the Xfinity Series this year as part of a deal with Trackhouse. Stephen Doran, Zane Smith’s chief of staff this year at the Cup, will be van Gisbergen’s team boss.
Richard Childress Racing
3: Austin Dillon is signed through at least next year. Dillon will have a new chief of staff as Richard Boswell, former chief of staff to Chase Briscoe at Stewart-Haas Racing, will become Dillon’s chief of staff in 2025.
8: Kyle Busch is signed through at least next year and no changes are expected.
33: The team has been flirting with adding a third full-size car next year but that is unlikely to happen.
Haas Factory Group
41: Cole Custer was announced on July 20 as the team’s driver for next year. The defending Xfinity Series champion and current series points leader who spent 2020-2022 in the Cup Series at SHR, it was a natural choice for this car with his Xfinity performance and the Haas sponsorship he has carried throughout his career. The team will remain Ford’s and RFK’s alliance. Aaron Kramer, Chris Buescher’s lead engineer on Cup at RFK, will be Custer’s chief of staff.
Front Row Motorsports
38 (charter obtained from SHR): Zane Smith was named driver on January 2, and will have the same team Gilliland had in 2024 with Ryan Bergenty as his crew chief.
Number TBA: Nah Gragson is signed to the team next year. The team has not announced his car number or crew chief, but Drew Blickensderfer is expected to accompany Gragson from SHR to the Front Row.
Todd Gilliland discusses unexpected contract extension with Front Row Motorsports
Spire Motorsports
7: Corey LaJoie is signed for next season but found out on July 24 that he will not be driving for the Spire. Justin Haley was announced as the driver of the car on September 20 and took that trip in late September. Starting next season, the former Rick Ware Racing driver will be partnered with new crew chief Rodney Childers.
71: Michael McDowell (currently driving for Front Row Motorsports) has signed with Spire for at least next season and is joining the team to replace Zane Smith. McDowell will bring chief of staff Travis Peterson with him to Spire.
77: Carson Hocevar is signed through at least next season. His performance this year is strong enough that he may be seen in other teams, but he will stay at Spire in 2025.
Legacy Motor Club
42: John Hunter Nemechek is signed through at least next season. He will be joined by Travis Mack, the latest crew chief for Kaulig Racing’s No. 1 car. 16 Cup, as his chief of staff in 2025.
43: Erik Jones, announced on Aug. 13, signed a contract extension that should keep him at No.
Hyak Motorsports (formerly JTG Daugherty Racing)
47: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. he is signed through at least next season and no changes are expected. Even with Kroger leaving as the main sponsor, the team has been promoting the store as Gordon Smith, who managed the team last season and officially announced the team’s name change Nov. 21. Hyak (meaning “quick” in Chinook Jargon, the trade language of the Pacific Northwest) is the name of Smith’s shipping company. Brad Daugherty still owns the team and Ernie Cope, the team’s general manager, has an ownership stake, as does investor Mark Hughes.
Rick Ware Racing
15: Since this car is leased from RFK, this car will run as an open car and it remains to be determined if it will run a full system. Bowman Gray’s replacement star Tim Brown will drive this car in the Clash and the rest of the season is still TBA.
51: Justin Haley has left Spire Motorsports and the team has replaced Spire driver Corey LaJoie for the final seven races of 2024. It appears that Cody Ware may be the driver of this all-time tour. LaJoie is no longer a likely candidate for this car.
Kaulig Racing
10 (formerly 31): Kaulig Racing announced September 28 that Ty Dillon will replace it Daniel Hemric This coming year. It got the number 10 next year as the closing of Stewart-Haas Racing left that number available. Former RCR engineer Andrew Dickenson will be chief of staff.
16: AJ Allmendinger will return to the Cup full time in 2025 in the same car he drove in the 2023 season. Trent Owens will remain with the car as crew chief.
Wood Brothers Racing
21: Josh Berry has been announced as the driver for the 2025 car as the SHR driver will replace Harrison Burton, who will drive for AM Racing in the Xfinity Series next season. Penske engineer Miles Stanley will serve as the car’s principal.
Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He spent decades covering motorsports, including more than 30 Daytona 500s, working for ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
Find out more about the NASCAR Cup Series Follow your favorites to get information about sports, news and more