NASCAR: The team least susceptible to change this offseason

Which team among NASCAR’s top organizations is least susceptible to an altered driver lineup between the 2020 and 2021 Cup Series seasons?

The offseason between the 2019 and 2020 NASCAR Cup Series seasons did not feature much activity in the form of drivers moving in and out of the sport’s top teams.

In fact, of the 17 drivers who competed for Joe Gibbs Racing, Stewart-Haas Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Team Penske or Chip Ganassi Racing in the 2019 season, 16 returned to the same organizations for the 2020 season.

The only change took place at Stewart-Haas Racing, and they have changed their driver lineup after each of the last four seasons now.

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They replaced Daniel Suarez, who later signed with Gaunt Brothers Racing, with rookie Cole Custer, who spent the last three seasons competing for the Stewart-Haas Racing Xfinity Series team.

But there could be a lot more driver movement among these five teams between the 2020 and 2021 seasons, as only nine of these 17 drivers are under contract for the 2021 season. Only one of these nine drivers signed a new deal after the 2020 season begun.

Which of these five teams will be least susceptible to change over the offseason?

Hendrick Motorsports are obviously going to need a new driver, as seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson announced in November that he is set to retire from full-time competition after the 2020 season. Alex Bowman is also in a contract year, although he is likely to return.

Stewart-Haas Racing have only one of their four drivers under contract for 2021, and that driver, Kevin Harvick, recently signed a contract extension to remain with the team through the 2023 season. Given the team’s recent history of altering their driver lineup from one year to the next, it’s hard to see things staying the same heading into next year.

Chip Ganassi Racing, Team Penske and Joe Gibbs Racing all have just one driver out of a contract at the end of the year. But of these three teams, Joe Gibbs Racing are the least likely to see change.

At the two-car Chip Ganassi Racing team, Kyle Larson is in a contract year, and at the three-car Team Penske team, Brad Keselowski is in a contract year. Both have been rumored as possible replacement candidates for Johnson at Hendrick Motorsports, with Keselowski currently considered the favorite. Larson has also been linked to Stewart-Haas Racing.

But at the four-car Joe Gibbs Racing team, Erik Jones is the only driver without a contract for the 2021 season, and even if they don’t bring him back for what would be a fourth season next year, their replacement for him would presumably be fairly obvious.

They formed a technical alliance with Leavine Family Racing ahead of the 2019 season and placed Christopher Bell there for the 2020 season with an enhanced technical alliance. This move came after Matt DiBenedetto spent the 2019 season driving for the team while Bell competed for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Xfinity Series for a second year.

Bell is under contract with Toyota through at least next year, so if Jones does not sign another extension, expect Bell to move to the #20 team. But even if Jones doesn’t have an amazing year, Joe Gibbs Racing may be hesitant to rush Bell to their four-car stable if he doesn’t have a good enough year.

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There could be quite a bit of change in the driver lineups among the top teams of the NASCAR Cup Series ahead of the 2021 season, although there is a slight chance that some of these teams won’t make any changes. Of these teams, Joe Gibbs Racing appear to be in the most comfortable position as far as not needing to make changes is concerned.

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