NASCAR: Go Fas situation could play right into Tony Stewart’s hands

Corey LaJoie’s departure from Go Fas Racing could play right into Tony Stewart’s hands for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.

Corey LaJoie announced in August that the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season will be his second and final season competing for Go Fas Racing behind the wheel of the #32 Ford, much like Matt DiBenedetto did two seasons ago, in the hope of landing a more competitive ride.

The 28-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native has confirmed having talks with a number of other organizations, although no offers have been confirmed.

Additionally, Go Fas Racing have still not confirmed his replacement, and as a result, this departure could play right into the hands of Stewart-Haas Racing, particularly Tony Stewart.

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Stewart-Haas Racing have altered their driver lineup after each of the last four seasons, doing so each year by bringing in one new driver as a replacement for another. This season, they still have a driver slated to become a free agent at the end of the year.

While Aric Almirola recently signed another contract extension, Clint Bowyer’s contract, which he extended late last year, expires after the 2020 season. Following comments made by Stewart, there have been rumors that Stewart-Haas Racing may look to bring ex-Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson back to NASCAR following his indefinite suspension for using a racial slur during an iRacing event back in April.

Stewart has always thought highly of Larson, who hasn’t yet been reinstated, and even tried to sign him a few years ago after announcing that the 2016 season would be his last. He was unable to do so due to Larson’s contract with Chip Ganassi Racing at the time and ended up hiring Bowyer instead.

Here’s where the Go Fas Racing situation comes into play.

When discussing on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio back in August whether or not he would be the team owner to give Larson the second chance for which he has been a huge advocate, Stewart noted that Chase Briscoe, the team’s Xfinity Series driver, is in the best position to join their Cup Series team among those who aren’t already there.

"“I think Chase has done such a great job with us. We have four great drivers in Cup cars now. We got Chase in an Xfinity car and definitely feel like that he’s getting himself into a position to where he’s going to be [in] a Cup car very soon as well. We’ve got a full stable right now and I like the group of guys we’ve got, it’s just a matter of making sure we give them everything they need to get the job done.”"

But would Stewart really pass up the opportunity to sign Larson if it came along?

Even with Briscoe considered, he technically may not have to.

Stewart-Haas Racing and Go Fas Racing formed a technical alliance ahead of the 2020 season. LaJoie drove the #32 Ford in 2019 and retained his ride for 2020, despite not having any previous ties to Stewart-Haas Racing.

But now he has confirmed that won’t return.

Moving Briscoe to Go Fas Racing could help him get acclimated at the Cup level before a direct promotion to the four-car team, it could help Go Fas Racing by giving them a solid driver behind the wheel of the #32 Ford, and it could help Stewart-Haas Racing avoid the risk of him leaving the organization for a team such as Hendrick Motorsports.

…all while giving them the opportunity to sign Larson.

It is worth noting that many believed that this technical alliance would allow Stewart-Haas Racing to retain their 2019 lineup in 2020 and promote Cole Custer to Go Fas Racing. That did not end up happening, as they ended up replacing Daniel Suarez with Custer behind the wheel of the #41 Ford and, as noted above, LaJoie retained his seat.

So there is no guarantee that a driver with previous ties to Stewart-Haas Racing will land the ride that LaJoie is set to vacate.

Even before he re-signed, the Smithfield-backed Almirola seemed like a lock to return behind the wheel of the #10 Ford next year, and as mentioned above, Stewart-Haas Racing have not moved out more than one driver per year at any point over the last four years, despite having changed their lineup after each season.

Now Bowyer is officially the one driver who would be moved out, if Stewart-Haas Racing do end up continuing their trend of altering their lineup.

So there won’t be more than one change in Stewart-Haas Racing’s lineup, meaning that bringing in both Larson and Briscoe at once isn’t realistic for 2021.

As a result, the Go Fas Racing connection seems perfect.

It even seems perfect if they don’t sign Larson and Bowyer stays on board, as competition director Greg Zipadelli has indicated is still a strong possibility.

But what about the long-term implications? Would Briscoe be stuck at Archie St. Hilaire’s one-car outfit unless he decides to leave Ford altogether, or would he be in position to join Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cup Series team in the near future?

Even if Bowyer stays, it likely won’t be for long. Custer does seem to be a long-term option for Stewart-Haas Racing, and Kevin Harvick doesn’t look like he is going to be retiring any time soon, given how he has performed in recent years and the fact that he signed a new deal that runs through the 2023 season before the 2020 season began.

But we can’t forget that he is almost 44 years old and isn’t going to be in a Stewart-Haas Racing Ford forever. And even without Harvick in the equation, how much longer will Almirola be with the team? He secures solid results and brings substantial sponsorship from Smithfield, but he hasn’t won a race since October of 2018.

He also hasn’t won a race outside of a superspeedway throughout his entire 13-year career. He won a rain-shortened race at Daytona International Speedway in July of 2014 before leading only the final lap at Talladega Superspeedway two seasons ago when teammate Kurt Busch ran out of fuel.

This is all based on speculation, of course. All we know is that Corey LaJoie won’t be back with Go Fas Racing next year and that Tony Stewart thinks highly of both Kyle Larson and Chase Briscoe while one of his team’s seats and Go Fas Racing’s lone seat are both without confirmed drivers for 2021.