NASCAR: 5 replacement candidates for Jimmie Johnson in 2021
By Asher Fair
Noah Gragson
Noah Gragson is theoretically the driver in the best position to replace Jimmie Johnson behind the wheel of the #48 Chevrolet at Hendrick Motorsports in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, although the 2020 Xfinity Series season will be a huge season for him as it pertains to proving he belongs not only at the Cup level but with a top-tier team.
Gragson made the move to JR Motorsports ahead of the 2019 season after driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the Truck Series, and he is the only full-time driver for the Rick Hendrick co-owned Xfinity Series team under the age of 33 at age 21.
The 2019 season proved to be a learning curve for the Las Vegas, Nevada native. He qualified for the playoffs and advanced to the round of 8 before ultimately settling for an eighth place finish in the championship standings, but he did not secure a race win.
He did record nine top five finishes, 22 top 10 finishes and a solid average finish of 9.3, but he led only 72 of the 5,743 laps that he completed.
With the “Big 3” of Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Cole Custer all set to compete in the Cup Series next year and Gragson having a full season of Xfinity Series experience under his belt, he can establish himself as a championship contender in 2020 and put himself in the conversation to replace Johnson in 2021.