All the hype from the silly season is always focused on the drivers and their movements within the NASCAR garage. Well, this time around, we had some massive moves with multiple drivers changing seats after the conclusion of 2024. This was largely put into motion by Stewart Haas Racing’s departure and multiple teams expanding with the addition of more charters.

However, it wasn’t just the drivers who jumped ships post-2024; there have been a significant amount of crew chief shuffle as well. Crew chiefs are the brains behind the strategy and the tactics that are on display at the racetrack, so it is important to keep a note of major changes going into the new year.

Here’s how the newly revamped teams look heading into the 2025 season

Richard Boswell: No. 3 Richard Childress Racing team

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 team will be paired with a new crew chief, Richard Boswell. This will be Boswell’s first job after the closure of Stewart Haas Racing. He worked with Chase Briscoe in the No. 4 Ford in 2024, where they won the Southern 500, bagged six top 10 finishes, and made a playoff appearance. Well, his planning and strategy on the No. 4 car last year at Darlington kept Kyle Busch away from his win. So, he will look to bring about positive change at RCR and Austin Dillon.

Drew Blickensdefer: No. 4 Front Row Motorsports team

Another former SHR crew chief who, fortunately, will get to work with his driver from 2024. Blickensdefer has moved in with Noah Gragson and the No. 4 Front Row Motorsports team. With 16 years of experience in NASCAR, the veteran crew chief will be eager to work his magic with young Gragson. Interestingly, Blickensdefer’s last NASCAR Cup Series win came with FRM driver Michael McDowell, who has now moved to Spire Motorsports.

Jeremy Bullins: No. 6 RFK Racing team

Brad Keselowski will be teaming up with Jeremy Bullins, who will be calling the shots at the top of the pit box for the No. 6 team. This is a reunion, as the two worked together on the No. 2 car through the 2020 and 2021 campaigns. Together, they won five races; four came in 2020. Keselowski finished the season second in the driver’s standings, and this was the closest he came to reclaiming his title after the triumph of 2012.

Rodney Childers: No. 7 Spire Motorsports team

Ever since the news about SHR’s departure was made public, Rodney Childers was constantly linked with a bunch of teams. But Spire Motorsports swiftly moved in and added him to the No. 7 roster, pairing him with their new driver Justin Haley. We all know the iconic partnership Childers formed with Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 team. So Spire will be hoping that he rekindles his magic with the #7 car in the hopes of competing for wins and a spot in the playoffs.

Andrew Dickerson: No. 10 Kaulig Racing team

Matt Kaulig and Chris Rice continue to make changes to the team, and they brought in Ty Dillon to pilot the No. 10 Chevy. Making the most of their alliance with RCR, they onboarded Andrew Dickerson, who has been with RCR as a race engineer. But in 2025, he will be stepping into the big boy shoes, calling the shots for Dillon’s No. 10 Chevy.

Chris Gayle: No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team

Perhaps one of the biggest changes within the Cup Series garage was Chris Gayle replacing veteran crew chief Chris Gabehart. Even Denny Hamlin was stunned to know that Gabehart won’t be working on the #11 team in 2025. We have seen Gayle lead the charge as the crew chief within JGR at the Xfinity and Cup Series levels. But it will be interesting to see how this new crew chief/driver partnership fares in the new year. All we know is this move has the potential to end Hamlin’s hopes of winning the championship.

Trent Owens: No. 16 Kaulig Racing team

Well, A. J. Allmendinger is back in the NASCAR Cup Series for 2025, and he reunites with Trent Owens. Allmendinger is one of the best road course racers in the Cup Series garage, and Kaulig Racing will be hoping to visit the victory lane like they did back in 2021 and 2023.

Miles Stanely: No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team

Wood Brothers Racing also made a huge overhaul to its iconic No. 21 team heading into the new NASCAR season. They added Josh Berry to the team, replacing Harrison Burton, and brought in Mike Stanley through their connection with Team Penske. Stanley has experience working as a performance engineer at Penske, and this will be his first foray in the crew chief role.

Charles Denike: No. 23 23XI Racing team

Bubba Wallace and the No. 23 team fired blanks for the entirety of the 2025 season. They needed a fresh set of ideas and perspective to pull them out of the ditch, and that is exactly what they did with the appointment of Charles Denike. Although Bootie Barker has contributed to the #23 team with two wins, they were miles behind the #45 team, who reached the championship race last year. Denike led the No. 19 Truck Series team alongside Christian Eckes and bagged eight race wins.

Chris Lawson: No. 34 Front Row Motorsports team

Todd Gilliland will reunite with his former crew chief Chris Lawson as he steps into a leadership role at FRM. Lawson was with Rick Ware Racing leading the No. 51 team, and he has previously worked with Gilliand in the Craftsman Truck Series for two seasons. He has had partial runs calling the races at the top of Gilliand’s team for select races in ARCA and the Cup Series.

Aaron Kramer: No. 41 Haas Factory Team

NASCAR’s newest Cup Series team will be rolling with a driver-crew chief duo of Cole Custer and Aaron Kramer. The 35-year-old was with RFK Racing and worked as a race engineer on Chris Buescher’s team. He has served as a crew chief in one-off races before, but this will be his entry into a full-time leadership role. It will be interesting how far the No. 41 team goes in the season on their very first attempt.

Travis Mack: No. 42 Legacy Motor Club team

Legacy Motor Club is one of the few NASCAR teams that makes frequent changes. While there have been significant personnel changes at the competition level, they have also added a new crew chief. Travis Mack will be joining John Hunter Nemechek and leading the charge of the No. 42 Toyota Camry. Mack recently captained the No. 16 Kaulig Racing team in 2024, which was shared by multiple drivers. He has also worked with Daniel Suarez and Trackhouse Racing in 2022.

Tyler Allen: No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing team

After the departure of Chris Gayle from the No. 54 team, JGR brought in Tyler Allen. He had a successful campaign in his rookie season as a crew chief in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2024, leading the #20 JGR team before swapping to the #19 team. In total, he contributed to eight race wins last year, but even a single Cup Series win with Ty Gibbs in 2025 would be a huge deal for the entire team.

Travis Peterson: No. 71 Spire Motorsports team

Michael McDowell will be pairing up with Travis Peterson in his debut run with Spire Motorsports driving the No. 71 Chevy. Like many of the NASCAR drivers above, this will be a reunion between the two as Peterson led the charge of McDowell’s No. 34 car at FRM in the 2023-2024 season. The two share one Cup Series victory, four top 5s, and fourteen top 10 finishes during their time together. And they will look to add to this strong run with a new setup and environment at Spire.

Andy Street: Richard Childress Racing

Andy Street will be leading the charge for RCR’s third entry, which will run multiple races in 2025. This will be a part-time ride, which will be shared by multiple drivers throughout the season. Street’s last assignment was with Austin Hill in the NASCAR Xfinity Series from 2022 to 2024. He helped the driver reach the championship race, so he’s got all the right credentials to push RCR’s program in the right direction.

Billy Plourde: No. 51 Rick Ware Racing team

After trying two drivers, Justin Haley and Corey LaJoie, in 2024, RWR has decided to hand over the keys of the No. 51 Ford to Cody Ware. Leading the charge of this new team will be Billy Plourde, who will look to elevate the team’s racing program in 2025.

What are your thoughts on these changes going into the new season? And which driver/crew chief partnership do you think will exceed all expectations?