NASCAR: 5 replacement candidates for Chris Buescher in 2020
By Asher Fair
Daniel Hemric
Rookie Daniel Hemric signed with Richard Childress Racing ahead of the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series season to drive the #8 Chevrolet. He signed a two-year contract, although the team had the option of ending that contract after one season.
It was recently announced that that is exactly what they will do, likely to promote superstar Xfinity Series driver Tyler Reddick to the Cup Series. Hemric will not return to Richard Childress Racing next year, and he does not currently have another ride lined up.
Hemric has not had a terrible rookie season, so many found Richard Childress Racing’s decision to axe him after just one season unfair, aside of the fact that Reddick appears to be far more ready for a full-time Cup Series ride with the team. Many fans took exception to the fact that Childress’s grandson Austin Dillon still has his ride with the team.
Hemric finished in a career-high fifth place finish in the race at Talladega Superspeedway in late April, and he finished in seventh in the race at Pocono Raceway in late July. He currently leads the Rookie of the Year standings over current JTG Daugherty Racing driver Ryan Preece.
Across NASCAR’s top three national series, Hemric has never won a race in five seasons, including two full seasons in the Truck Series and two full seasons in the Xfinity Series. But it was his consistency in the Truck Series that landed him in the Xfinity Series, and it was his consistency there, which resulted in two Championship 4 appearances, that landed him in the Cup Series.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better driver who hasn’t won in any of NASCAR’s top three national series than the 28-year-old Kannapolis, North Carolina native, and with Chris Buescher’s consistency having been through the roof with 16 consecutive top 18 finishes at one point this season, Hemric and JTG Daugherty Racing could be a perfect match.