Just like any other major sport, NASCAR drivers are immune to the phenomenon of retirement. Although athletes in team sports have a peak career between 18 and 35, NASCAR stars can stretch their longevity and remain at the top of their game. We have seen drivers well over the age of 40 still going toe-to-toe with the young guns.

However, the push is coming to shove for the veteran drivers who managed to continue the legacy of stock car racing. And now it looks like they will have to pass the torch on to the next generation.

Veteran NASCAR drivers on the brink of their competitive racing careers

After the dominance of Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson, the Cup Series has not seen the rise of the new superstar. Rather, the stage was scattered, with multiple drivers conquering NASCAR’s highest peak and winning the Cup Series championship. The decade from 2011 to 2020 saw a total of nine different winners, and the turn of the new decade has seen the veterans on the brink of their final few years of racing.

Kevin Harvick decided to hang his boots after the 2023 season, having been the most competitive driver alongside Rodney Childers in the No. 4 car. The duo managed to win the title in their first-ever season in 2014 and became regular contenders with five Championship 4 appearances. SHR wasn’t the powerhouse team it once used to be in the new decade, and Harvick chose to call it quits from competitive racing in the Cup Series.

Martin Truex Jr has now followed him on a similar path, as he announced that he won’t return to Cup racing after the end of 2024. The JGR driver (44) is the oldest active driver and was contemplating a call to hang his boots for some time now, and he’s finally made up his mind. His career highlight will be the championship win at Furniture Row Racing, a single-car outfit, in 2017. Well, he can focus on his fishing adventures now that he’s handed the keys to the No. 19 car to Chase Briscoe.

Although, it seems like Kyle Busch has a few good years of racing left in him, it’s hard to see him reclaim his lost mojo and bag a championship win. Rowdy is the only driver to have collected multiple championship trophies in the 2011–20 decade. But ever since he left Joe Gibbs Racing for RCR, he’s lost his winning touch. Moreover, his troubles with the Next Gen car are well documented. At 39, we still have a few good years of seeing him race, but he’s counting his days of competing in the Cup Series.

Not to forget, Denny Hamlin will be 44 by the end of this year, and 2024 looks like his best shot to claim the championship that has eluded him for so long. Unlike the rest of the drivers mentioned above, Hamlin is the only one who’s managed to give the young guys a run for their money. But with his other ventures, like managing 23XI Racing and his podcast show, he is staring at the inevitable outcome of calling it quits.

But who are those young talents or the waves of new stars that are going to take over the NASCAR Cup Series?

Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, and Ryan Blaney look like the real deal

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The 2020 season was a pivotal moment that saw a change of guard, with Chase Elliott winning the championship. Although the likes of Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, Hamlin, and Busch are still around, the young talents have truly started to spread their wings and make a name for themselves.

Kyle Larson certainly rose to the occasion and established himself as one of the pioneers to lead the charge for younger generations. Aged 31, he already has bagged NASCAR’s prized possession and brought back the Tony Stewart vibes. We would run out of words if we started compiling his achievements on the racetrack. Going by his 2024 season, it looks like he is headed towards another championship triumph. It’s fair to say that Hendrick Motorsports might have delivered yet another superstar driver to the sport.

Having multiple championship-caliber drivers is only good for NASCAR. Fortunately, Larson doesn’t have it easy achieving his goals, and Ryan Blaney for the Penske camp is now rising to the occasion. With 17 wins compared to 27 for Larson, it might look like he is laying a catch-up, but in reality, he is holding his own. He is the defending champion, and he has emerged as one of the drivers to have decoded the mystery to get the best out of the Next Gen car.

With Chevy and Ford trying to stake a claim with their stars, it was obvious that Toyota was going to join the party soon. And they certainly did it with the emergence of Christopher Bell. Unlike Blaney and Larson, he has yet to claim a championship win. But given his consistent performance, it is only a matter of time before he clinches that shining trophy. Given that Hamlin and MTJ are in the twilight phase of their careers, Bell will have to lead the charge for Joe Gibbs Racing in the future.

Tyler Reddick, Noah Gragson, Ty Gibbs, and Chase Elliott are also prominent candidates who could alter the course of NASCAR’s history in the modern era. It is fair to say that with these drivers, the future of the Cup Series is indeed in safe hands.