NASCAR: Matt DiBenedetto won’t return to Leavine Family Racing in 2020

Matt DiBenedetto has confirmed that he will not be returning to Leavine Family Racing for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Leavine Family Racing will not renew Matt DiBenedetto’s contract to drive the #95 Toyota past the conclusion of the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series season, the 28-year-old Grass Valley, California native confirmed Thursday.

DiBenedetto is in his first season driving for the team after he gambled last season by leaving Go Fas Racing to seek a better opportunity and that gamble paid off, but at least for now, it will also be his last.

Here is what DiBenedetto had to say about the matter, according to Motorsport.

"“I got the devastating news that I will not be able to return to Leavine Family Racing next season. Nonetheless, I can’t express how thankful I am for Bob, Sharon, Matt Diliberto and everyone at LFR and Toyota for allowing me to do exactly what I set out to do, which was showcase my talent. It has been exciting for us as a team to get top-fives, top-10s and lead the most laps in the Daytona 500.”"

This news comes despite the fact that DiBenedetto and Leavine Family Racing have made major strides throughout the season.

Aside of the fact that DiBenedetto led the most laps in the season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, there were not many highlights to his start to the season, as his best finish was just 12th place in the season’s first 15 races and his average finish was only 24.47.

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But over the course of the next eight races, DiBenedetto has recorded eight top eight finishes, including the first two top five finishes of his career in the form of a fourth place finish in the race at Sonoma Raceway and a fifth place finish in the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and an average finish of 12.88.

This news had been speculated because of the fact that Erik Jones has been tipped to return to Joe Gibbs Racing while the team also want to make room for Xfinity Series superstar Christopher Bell in the Cup Series.

Leavine Family Racing switched manufacturers from Chevrolet to Toyota ahead of the 2019 season and formed a technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, so Joe Gibbs Racing are expected to loan Bell to Leavine Family Racing to replace DiBenedetto, much like they did by sending Jones to the then Joe Gibbs Racing-affiliated Furniture Row Racing for the 2017 season.

With Matt DiBenedetto having confirmed that he will not return to Leavine Family Racing in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, will Erik Jones end up back at Joe Gibbs Racing and will Christopher Bell end up replacing DiBenedetto as expected? Where will DiBenedetto himself end up driving next season, if anywhere?