NASCAR: 5 replacement candidates for Clint Bowyer in 2021
By Asher Fair
Clint Bowyer 2021 replacement candidates: Chase Briscoe
Chase Briscoe has emerged as the clear favorite to replace Clint Bowyer behind the wheel of the #14 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing next year, and for good reason.
Briscoe was seen as one of the favorites to win this year’s Xfinity Series championship after the “Big 3” of Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer and Christopher Bell were promoted from the Xfinity Series to the Cup Series following a season that saw them finish in the top three in the standings with a combined 21 victories in 33 races.
Briscoe, whose current contract is with Ford, finished in fifth place in last year’s championship standings with one victory, and the only non-“Big 3” driver who finished higher than him was Justin Allgaier, who has yet to win a championship in the series in nine seasons.
The 25-year-old Mitchell, Indiana has not disappointing this season, and as a result, he is poised to take a path similar to the one Custer took from Stewart-Haas Racing’s Xfinity Series team to their Cup Series team.
Through 30 races, Briscoe leads the championship standings and has already clinched a spot in the Championship 4 for the first time in his career. He has won a series-high nine races and nobody else has won more than five. He has also recorded 16 top five finishes and 20 top 10 finishes with a series-high 957 laps led and a series-high average finish of 7.9.