NASCAR: 3 top free agents already off the market
By Asher Fair
Before the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season even started, three pending free agents re-signed with their current teams, announcing multi-year deals.
Four drivers who were once set to enter the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season with uncertain futures have announced their plans for the foreseeable future.
First of all, Kevin Harvick announced that this will be his 10th and final season with Stewart-Haas Racing and his 23rd and final season in the Cup Series.
Harvick is set to join Mike Joy and Clint Bowyer in the Fox Sports broadcast booth in 2024 after retiring from the competition side of the sport.
Then last week, three other pending free agents announced multi-year contract extensions with their current NASCAR Cup Series teams.
On Wednesday, Trackhouse Racing Team announced a multi-year contract extension for Daniel Suarez to continue driving the No. 99 Chevrolet. Suarez, who joined the team as their original driver when they entered the series in 2021, signed an extension last season for 2023, but it was only a one-year deal.
Hendrick Motorsports also announced a multi-year contract extension for Alex Bowman to continue driving the No. 48 Chevrolet, ending speculation that they could look to move on from him after the 2023 season.
Bowman, who has competed full-time for Rick Hendrick’s team since 2018, had been the only one of the team’s four drivers without a contract through at least 2025, and his deal now runs through 2026. Ally Financial signed with the team to continue serving as the primary sponsor of the No. 48 Chevrolet through 2028.
Despite re-signing Suarez, Trackhouse Racing Team, unlike Hendrick Motorsports, still had a pending free agent on their roster for 2023. That is now also no longer the case.
While the specifics of his new deal weren’t announced, Ross Chastain signed a multi-year contract extension to continue driving the No. 1 Chevrolet for the Justin Marks and Pitbull-owned team for the foreseeable future.
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Chastain joined the team in 2022 after they expanded to two cars following their acquisition of Chip Ganassi Racing.