NASCAR: 3 drivers who could sign with Stewart-Haas Racing for 2019
By Asher Fair
Christopher Bell
The idea of Christopher Bell driving a Stewart-Haas Racing Ford seems crazy, especially since the 23-year-old Norman, Oklahoma is a Toyota driver who gives a lot of credit to the Japanese manufacturer to getting him to where he is in his racing career. But it is certainly possible.
Bell is currently in his first season as a NASCAR Xfinity Series driver after winning the 2017 Truck Series championship in his second full season in the sport. In both of his seasons as a full-time driver in the sport, the 2016 and 2017 seasons, he drove the #4 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota. He now drives the #20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
Bell sits in fourth place in the Xfinity Series championship standings with four victories, 13 top five finishes, 14 top 10 finishes and three pole positions through the season’s first 24 races, and he leads all drivers with 24 playoffs points. His average starting position is 8.8 and his average finishing position is 11.1.
There is a chance that because Furniture Row Racing are set to shut down after the conclusion of the 2018 Cup Series season, Joe Gibbs Racing may seek to form a technical alliance with another team, as they have had a technical alliance with Furniture Row Racing since the 2016 season.
If they do form a technical alliance with another team, they would likely do so with Leavine Family Racing. Leavine Family Racing currently field the #95 Chevrolet, which is driven by Kasey Kahne, but Kahne is set to retire at the end of the season.