NASCAR: Stewart-Haas Racing targeting technical alliance with Go Fas Racing?
By Asher Fair
Stewart-Haas Racing are reportedly exploring the possibility of forming a technical alliance with Go Fas Racing for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season.
With the Gen-7 NASCAR Cup Series chassis and body slated to be introduced ahead of the 2021 season, Stewart-Haas Racing are reportedly discussing the possibility of jettisoning some of their cars for the 2020 season due to the extra inventory that they expect they will have.
According to Sports Business Journal’s Adam Stern, they have explored the possibility of doing so by forming a technical alliance with Go Fas Racing, which currently field the #32 Ford that is driven by Corey LaJoie.
Here is what Stern shared.
'@StewartHaasRcng is talking to @GoFasRacing32 about a potential new alliance, as @NateRyan first reported.
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) August 19, 2019
➖ @ColeCuster has been mentioned as an option for the 32, but @CoreyLaJoie may stay, which'd make that a moot point.
➖ Front Row is an option for LaJoie if he leaves. pic.twitter.com/jR7D4mM9MA
With the futures surrounding Clint Bowyer and Daniel Suarez, both of whom being at risk of missing this year’s playoffs with Suarez currently sitting just two points ahead of Bowyer for the 16th and final position ahead of the playoff cut line, there had been rumors that Stewart-Haas Racing Xfinity Series driver Cole Custer would replace one of those two drivers ahead of the 2020 season.
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After all, while Stewart-Haas Racing are not known to sign super young drivers to their Cup Series team, their Cup Series driver lineup has not remained the same from one season to the next since between the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
A technical alliance with Go Fas Racing could potentially allow them to promote Custer to the Cup Series without bringing him straight to Stewart-Haas Racing while either retaining both Bowyer and Suarez or replacing one of them with somebody such as Matt DiBenedetto, who has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he deserves a top-tier ride at the Cup level. DiBenedetto currently has nothing lined up for next year after announcing that Leavine Family Racing would not renew his contract.
Joe Gibbs Racing are expected to do something similar by promoting Xfinity Series driver Christopher Bell to the Cup Series through their technical alliance with Leavine Family Racing.
If Custer ends up driving for Go Fas Racing next year through a technical alliance with Stewart-Haas Racing, LaJoie could end up at Front Row Motorsports as the replacement for David Ragan, who announced last week that the 2019 season will be his final season as a full-time Cup Series driver.
A technical alliance with Go Fas Racing could be a great way for Stewart-Haas Racing to promote Custer to the Cup Series. We saw last year what happened last year when Stewart-Haas Racing partnered with Rick Ware Racing, arguably the slowest team on the grid, to field an entry for Custer in select races.
In the September race at Richmond Raceway, Custer qualified in an impressive 10th place, so a technical alliance with Go Fas Racing, while they are not a huge step up from Rick Ware Racing at this point, could still prove fruitful for Custer at the Cup level, especially with him in jettisoned Stewart-Haas Racing equipment.
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Will Stewart-Haas Racing form a technical alliance with Go Fas Racing for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series? If so, who will be the driver of the #32 Ford for the latter?