NASCAR team makes long-awaited driver announcement

Front Row Motorsports finally confirmed their driver lineup for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, announcing no changes from 2022.

At long last, Front Row Motorsports confirmed on Thursday what many had presumed for quite some time. Both Michael McDowell and Todd Gilliland are set to return to the team for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.

McDowell is set to return for a sixth season behind the wheel of the No. 34 Ford, while Gilliland is set to return for a second season behind the wheel of the No. 38 Ford.

McDowell had a career year in 2022, recording 12 top 10 finishes and an average finish of 16.7, while Gilliland recorded two top 10 finishes, including a career-high fourth place finish in the race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, in his rookie season.

Travis Peterson, who had been the engineer and interim crew chief for the No. 17 RFK Racing team in 2022, is set to replace the Hendrick Motorsports-bound Blake Harris as McDowell’s crew chief.

Ryan Bergenty, who had been McDowell’s car chief, is set to replace Seth Barbour as Gilliland’s crew chief, with Barbour being promoted to technical director at Front Row Motorsports.

Since the team entered the sport in 2004, they have never kept the same exact driver lineup from one year to the next.

That streak is set to end in 2023, though there is still one slight change that they are set to make.

When the Bob Jenkins-owned team announced over the summer that Zane Smith, who went on to win the Truck Series championship in his first season with the organization, is set to return to their Truck Series team in 2023, they also announced that he is set to compete in select Cup Series races in a third entry.

The full schedule for Smith, who made his Cup Series debut for RFK Racing behind the wheel of the No. 17 Ford at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway back in June when Chris Buescher was sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols, has not been determined, but it has been announced that he is set to compete in the season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway.

The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season is scheduled to begin on Sunday, February 19. The 65th annual running of the Great American Race is set to be broadcast live on Fox beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET.