Big Blow for Tony Stewart as Star Driver Touted to Follow Kevin Harvick Out the Exit Door; Relief for Joe Gibbs With Denny Hamlin & Martin Truex Jr Updates

With aging lions competing against young blood, the current Cup Series offers a plethora of distinctive features that keep old-school fans engaged to the core. While veteran drivers of the sport are slowly fading into history with Stewart-Haas Racing driver, Kevin Harvick announcing that this will be his final season, his fellow veterans at Joe Gibbs Racing are still at large as the 42-year-old Martin Truex Jr picked up his second win of the season with a last-minute stellar rally.

While his JGR teammate, Denny Hamlin, another 42-year-old driver is still chasing his first title, the JGR camp as of now isn’t looking for a worthy replacement. However, that’s not the case in the Ford camp. Tony Stewart’s SHR needs to fill in the void of both Harvick and his struggling teammate, Aric Almirola.

Despite returning to the track after a hasty retirement, the #10 Mustang certainly needs a proper replacement for Almirola, who will probably step away from the track after this year. With one of its top teams caught in a rut, desperate for a worthy driver to pilot the #10 car, SHR’s current scenario underlines the unpredictable nature of the sport.

Tony Stewart faces a tricky situation as the proud Ford camp is on the look-out for a worthy replacement

Earlier this year before the season had commenced, the #4 Ford driver Kevin Harvick announced that this will be his final season. With their ace driver stepping away, the Ford camp had to zero in on a worthy replacement. After several rumors making the rounds, it seems that SHR has finalized the young and talented Josh Berry as its new recruit to pilot the #4 Mustang next year. With Berry’s spot confirmed on the team, Tony Stewart now has one thing less to worry about.

However, that leaves one another major question about the noncommittal #10 driver. Aric Almirola returned to the series despite announcing his retirement plans earlier last year. As Almirola is currently sailing on rough seas, his future still remains a mystery, and hence arises the need for SHR to seek another top driver along with a major sponsor for the #10 car. It is worth noting that when Almirola replaced Danica Patrick at SHR in 2018, he brought along his primary sponsor, Smithfield, from Richard Petty Motorsports.

While this raises a lot of questions, the current situation widens the gap between NASCAR’s two prominent teams. JGR camp is sailing steadily with both of its ace drivers showing no signs of slowing down. Martin Truex Jr redeemed himself off last year’s slump with a solid playoff chance this year. Moreover, his fellow veteran, Hamlin, too is in the chase as the Fed-Ex-sponsored driver is looking to seize the title this year. Often labeled as “the best Cup driver to never win the championship,” Hamlin would like to do away with the painful reminder.

With more updates coming from the NASCAR nation, Tony Stewart and Gene Haas seemed to have made an excellent move signing in the young Xfinity prospect while sources suggest that SHR has trickled down to a few names as Almirola’s replacement. Zane Smith is another name strongly in contention for being Almirola’s replacement as the 23-year-old is widely regarded as a strong competitor. There have been murmurs of SHR roping in F1 veteran Jenson Button as well, though nothing has been announced as yet.

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However, finding suitable replacements isn’t the only nightmare the team has been having. The team is still to recover from the hefty L3 penalty imposed on it, with more details emerging lately.

Chase Briscoe’s penalty sends shockwaves across the community as the team hits a new low

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Last week, NASCAR fans were in for an emotional rollercoaster. As veteran MTJ’s rally in the final 15 laps brought back the thrill and excitement NASCAR used to have at Sonoma, fans were shocked to see the details emerging from Chase Briscoe’s penalty. Following the action-packed race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, NASCAR sent off the #14 car for closer inspection at their R&D center where modified parts were found, leaving the organization no choice but to hand away hefty penalties.

Chase Briscoe was fined 120 driver points and 25 playoff points while his crew chief faces a 6-race suspension and a hefty fine of $250,000. While SHR’s chief competition officer Greg Zipadelli deemed it as a “quality control lapse,” the community slammed the team unmercifully for its negligence. NASCAR’s “Rowdy” was at the forefront of criticism.

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Busch fired away sharp words against Stewart’s team, even presenting a “what an idiot award.” Busch stated, “I wish we had a ‘What-an-Idiot Award,’ Jesus.” Meanwhile, the proud Ford camp is certainly in troubled waters as they desperately need to find a worthy replacement for the unsure Almirola while finding a way out of the massive penalty debacle.