22 Joey Logano--Other than AutoZone joining as an associate sponsor, nothing changes (although it would be nice if Joey's VOICE finally changed).
24 Jeff Gordon--Jeff and his sponsors come back again, while his crew chief continues to be criticized by fans incessantly.
27 Paul Menard--Did you REALLY expect ANYTHING to change?
29 (or 3) Austin Dillon--Austin is widely expected to run for Rookie of the Year in Kevin Harvick's old ride, which is also widely expected to transition to the #3. Sponsorship remains up in the air, though Cheerios is likely to join (gotta love a sponsor you feed with a spoon!).
30 ???--Who cares.
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| Newman's 2014 CAT look. People love cats. |
31 Ryan Newman--Rocketman comes over with Caterpillar and Quicken Loans splitting virtuality the entire schedule. No word on the status of the Smurfs.
32 ???--No news here yet, besides Ken Schrader announcing his retirement from Cup racing at the end of 2013. Fans were shocked that he chose to retire now, and not in 2006.
33 ???--The Falk/Hillman duo may or may not return in 2014.
34 David Ragan--This year's most-surprising race-winner comes back next season as-is, though sponsorship stays undecided (read: Taco Bell).
35 Josh Wise--Even Josh is starting to wonder how he stays in this ride.
38 David Gilliland--David Ragan's pushing partner returns for 2014.
41 Kurt Busch--The biggest (and most-surprising) change for 2014 has Kurt Busch moving to a brand-new Stewart-Haas Racing team, sponsored "in-house" by Haas Automation. Look for Kurt to stay here for good…well, until a ride opens up at Hendrick.
42 Kyle Larson--The young phenom moves up to challenge for Rookie of the Year. Target remains, allowing Kyle to continue the great tradition of Jimmy Spencer and Reed Sorenson.
43 Aric Alimrola--No big changes in store for the driver with the oddest first-name in the sport.
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| They should make this glow in the dark |
47 AJ Allmendinger--The Dinger takes over for Bobby Labonte, whose future remains up in the air (though I'm guessing that air smells like a Past Champion's Provisional). All the food and bleach sponsors come back.
48 Jimmie Johnson--No big changes here, though it would be nice if "Kobalt" Tools actually learned how to spell.
51 ???--Probably the best-ride available has been rumored for Justin Allgaier. Nobody can figure out why this team is STILL called Phoenix Racing.
55 Brian Vickers--Vickers takes over for Mark Vicktrip in 2014, with Aaron's staying on-board for the entire season.
56 ??? (part-time)--The former Napa team is scaling back to part-time. Michael Waltrip is expected to run at the plate tracks, with Jeff Burton rumored for a number of other races. And thus, a team with a long history of, um…"success?", begins to wind down.
78 Martin Truex Jr.--The pride of Jersey moves over to Colorado's #1 racing team.
83 & 93 Reuty & Kvapil?--BK Racing may or may not return with its dynamic duo next year. Though if they don't, expect far fewer cautions.
87 Joe Nemechek--No changes, although running a majority of the race lengths in 2013 may have aged Joe terribly.
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr.--National Guard and Mtn Dew/Amp return to sponsor about two-thirds of the schedule between them. The rest of the schedule may or may not be picked up by the Mystery Sponsor that still hasn't been announced.
95 Michael McDowell--McDowell takes a bold step sideways.
98 ???--The driver remains unknown, though sponsor Black Paint is expected to return.
99 Carl Edwards--No changes here, with the slew of sponsors expected to come back. No word on if Carl will continue to do commercials for sandwich shops with sideline reporters.