NASCAR team confirms driver change for Talladega, second of 2024

Only two of the 36 charter entries are being shared by multiple drivers throughout the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, and the story has been quite different for each of them so far this year.

The No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet has seen a total of five drivers through the first nine races of the season, and on only one occasion has the driver remained the same from one race to the next. That trend is set to continue this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway, with Shane van Gisbergen replacing Ty Dillon to make his second start of the year.

But the No. 15 Rick Ware Racing Ford has seen just one change so far this season, and that change happened two months ago.

Rick Ware Racing changing drivers for Talladega

Just as he did last year, Riley Herbst opened up the season behind the wheel of the No. 15 Ford in the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. Kaz Grala, who competed for Front Row Motorsports at Daytona, took over the following weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and he has been in the car ever since.

Grala actually drove the No. 15 Ford before Herbst did this season, but that was in the preseason Busch Light Clash exhibition race at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Now after eight straight starts for Grala, a stretch which saw him record a top finish of 14th place in his first start for Rick Ware Racing at Atlanta, another driver change has been made for the No. 15 Ford.

Cody Ware is set to drive the car in this Sunday afternoon's 188-lap GEICO 500 at the four-turn, 2.66-mile (4.281-kilometer) high-banked Lincoln, Alabama oval. He has not competed in a race in more than a year, as he was arrested and suspended last April.

After all charges relating to the arrest were dropped over the offseason, Ware was reinstated by NASCAR. It is expected that he will compete in around 10 races this year.

The GEICO 500 is set to be shown live on Fox from Talladega Superspeedway beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, April 21. Start a free trial of FuboTV today and don't miss it!