NASCAR: 5 possible replacements for Joe Gibbs Racing in 2022
By Asher Fair
Possible Joe Gibbs Racing drivers for 2022: No. 2 – John Hunter Nemechek
John Hunter Nemechek seems like a lock to pilot the Joe Gibbs Racing “star car” for select races throughout the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series season.
Nemechek competed full-time for Kyle Busch Motorsports behind the wheel of the #4 Toyota for the first time in the Truck Series in 2021, and he competed in three Xfinity Series races for Joe Gibbs Racing (as well as two other races for Sam Hunt Racing).
In just his second start for Joe Gibbs Racing behind the wheel of the #54 Toyota, he won at Texas Motor Speedway.
Many even expected that Nemechek would be promoted to the Xfinity Series to drive for Joe Gibbs Racing as a full-time driver for 2022, and justifiably so given the success he had in 2021 (in both the Truck Series and the Xfinity Series), but he ended up re-signing with Kyle Busch’s team for another year.
Though a full-time Xfinity Series ride is out of the picture, expect him to compete in a number of races in Joe Gibbs Racing’s “star car” again next year, and expect him to compete in more than three races.
With Busch having retired from the series and with Ty Gibbs likely to move from part-time driver to full-time driver, there should be more opportunities for the 24-year-old Mooresville, North Carolina native.
He has notably already signed with Sam Hunt Racing, another Toyota team, for two events.