NASCAR’s free agent class of 2021 is absolutely loaded

Several free agents are set to hit the market after the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, making up one of the most loaded free agent classes the sport has seen.

The 2020 NASCAR Cup Series driver lineup features a few changes here and there, with a few more slated to take place before the season begins in just over two months with the 62nd annual Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, but for the most part, a lot is set to remain the same, especially looking at the sport’s top teams.

At the four-car teams of Hendrick Motorsports, Stewart-Haas Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, the only change is that Cole Custer is set to replace Daniel Suarez behind the wheel of the #41 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing.

Additionally, the three-car lineup of Team Penske and the two-car lineup of Chip Ganassi Racing are both set to remain the same as well.

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Some of the key changes elsewhere throughout the paddock are Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Chris Buescher switching teams, moving to JTG Daugherty Racing and Roush Fenway Racing, respectively, and Christopher Bell replacing Matt DiBenedetto behind the wheel of the #95 Toyota at Leavine Family Racing.

DiBenedetto, meanwhile, is set to replace the retired Paul Menard behind the wheel of the #21 Ford at Wood Brothers Racing and Tyler Reddick is set to replace Daniel Hemric behind the wheel of the #8 Chevrolet at Richard Childress Racing.

The offseason between the 2020 and 2021 seasons, on paper, could be a lot crazier, as the free agent class of 2021 is absolutely stacked from top to bottom.

After being extended through the 2020 season, the deals of Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer are both up after next year. The specifics of Custer’s initial deal are not known, but Kevin Harvick is the only driver confirmed at the four-car Ford team through 2021.

The multi-year contracts of Team Penske teammates Ryan Blaney and Brad Keselowski, both signed in July of 2017, are also set to expire after the season, leaving Joey Logano as the team’s only driver under contract through 2021; he is under contract through 2023.

Jimmie Johnson was slated to become a free agent after 2020, but he is set to retire from full-time competition at that time. Nevertheless, who Hendrick Motorsports tab as his replacement behind the wheel of the #48 Chevrolet will be a focal point as well.

At Hendrick Motorsports, Alex Bowman is also set to become a free agent, although the #88 Chevrolet has multiple sponsorship deals lined up through 2021 and beyond. Nevertheless, William Byron and Chase Elliott are their only drivers under contract beyond 2020. The details of Byron’s contract are unknown but Elliott is under contract through 2022.

While Kurt Busch is under contract with Chip Ganassi Racing through the 2021 season, Kyle Larson is not. He has only ever driven full-time for Chip Ganassi’s team as a full-time driver, but his name has been thrown around as a possible driver for multiple other teams in 2021 already, including Stewart-Haas Racing and Hendrick Motorsports.

Joe Gibbs Racing are the top-tier team with the most certainty for 2021 as it stands right now, as Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. are all slated to return to the team. However, even they face some level of uncertainty, as Erik Jones signed a one-year contract extension in 2019 to continue driving for the team through 2020.

With Bell now set to drive for the Joe Gibbs Racing-affiliated Leavine Family Racing, he is in a prime position to replace Jones behind the wheel of the #20 Toyota in 2021 if Jones does not do enough to warrant another contract extension for what would be his fourth season with the four-car Toyota team.

Even with all of these pending free agents currently competing at top-tier teams, this list does not include deals that could potentially be ended early or unexpected retirements, two possibilities that we have seen on display on multiple occasions as of late.

The loaded free agent class of 2021 could set up a crazy NASCAR Cup Series Silly Season, the likes of which NASCAR hasn’t seen in quite some time. Who will end up driving for which teams in two years?