Trackhouse Racing under the leadership of Justin Marks has cemented itself as a competitive racing team in the Cup Series. As far as their expansion plans and growth plans, they have adopted a rather unique approach. Project 91, the program flagged off in 2022, has proved to be an enormous success for the team.

Shane van Gisbergen’s graduation to the Cup level is a recent example of how this non-traditional approach has fared well for the team. The idea behind Project 91 is to attract racing talents from different disciplines of racing, especially drivers beyond the domestic borders. Now that the SVG has completed the cycle, the program has served its purpose, right? But, taking notice of Justin Marks’ words, the program will kick-start again shortly.

Trackhouse Racing will resume its search for a new SVG soon

SVG has taken the NASCAR world by storm. After scripting history with his maiden win at the Chicago Street race, the Kiwi Speedster secured a full-time Xfinity Series ride in 2024. Continuing his success story, the 35-year-old will make a dream move to the Cup Series in 2025. He will lead the charge for a third Trackhouse Racing team, #88.

This move was made possible after Trackhouse Racing broke the bank and purchased a third charter from the now-defunct Stewart Haas Racing. But does this mean the Project 91 program has run its course? This is what team owner Justin Marks had to say about the future of this successful project.

“We’re having those discussions right now. I think that Project 91 is something that 100 percent in my mind, I’d love to continue,” Marks said while speaking to V8SLEUTH. Despite SVG’s success, the team has its hands full regarding slots in the Cup Series. They had to let go of Zane Smith to aid SVG’s arrival, and Connor Zilisch, on the other hand, signed a full-time Xfinity ride with JR Motorsports.

“I would expect Project 91 to be back sooner than later. Obviously, it has to fit into the workflow of the company. We’re expanding our focus on running three competitive Cup cars next year. There’s a lot of interest in Project 91, both from drivers and from commercial partners. I would anticipate that to continue in some capacity.” Marks further added.

On the flip side, this ambitious team driver left an inexperienced driver, Zane Smith, stranded. He will have to knock on multiple doors to continue his competitive racing career at the top level.

23XI Racing or Front Row Motorsports could help Smith stay afloat in the Cup Series

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The former Truck Series champ was touted as the upcoming star in the NASCAR Cup Series after being signed to Trackhouse Racing. But at the start of the 2024 season, the team only fielded two full-time riders; thus, he had to be loaned out to Spire Motorsports, where he took charge of the new team. He struggled to find his footing inexperienced and away from his parents’ team.

To make matters worse, his team chose to cut ties with the young driver after the 2024 season. Given how active the silly season has been this year, there is a possibility that Smith could find his new home. Like Trackhouse Racing, FRM and 23XI Racing were among the Cup Series teams looking to expand to a three-car outfit in 2025.

FRM has already locked their third charter and added Noah Gragson to their driver’s line-up. Todd Gilliland will assume the role of senior driver, thus making Smith’s arrival in the third car a sensible move. Meanwhile, 23XI Racing could serve as a good option if Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan are willing to shell out $25–30 million to add a third charter.

What are your thoughts on how Trackhouse Racing handled the Zane Smith situation?