NASCAR Cup Series: Top 5 pending free agents for 2021

2. Alex Bowman

The 2020 season is Alex Bowman’s third full season driving for Hendrick Motorsports after replacing Dale Earnhardt Jr. behind the wheel of the #88 Chevrolet ahead of the 2018 season, and it is a contract year for him after signing a two-year contract extension in the middle of 2018.

All signs point toward Hendrick Motorsports retaining Bowman in the 2021. The team have several sponsorship deals lined up for the #88 Chevrolet past the 2020 season, and Bowman has shown potential and improvement in his first two-plus seasons driving for the team. After winning one race in his first two seasons, he is already a winner in 2020.

Plus, Jimmie Johnson is set to retire after the 2020 season, meaning they will already have to worry about replacing one driver. Even with William Byron and Chase Elliott already under contract through at least 2021 (Byron undisclosed, Elliott through 2022), it makes more sense to stick with Bowman and retain three drivers as opposed to just two.

But if they opt not to, the strides that the 26-year-old Phoenix, Arizona native has shown would make him a target for several other teams. He still struggles a bit with inconsistency, but two round of 12 appearances in his first two full seasons driving for Hendrick Motorsports bode well for him.

Additionally, after becoming the first driver in Cup Series history to finish in second place in three consecutive races without a career victory, he responded only five races later by driving to victory lane, and he did it in the face of adversity, blowing a lead late and battling back. If he ends up hitting the market, he won’t be there for long.