With a brand-new car coming into play for 2022 plenty of Nascar teams are using the upcoming offseason as a chance to make some pretty serious changes. In place of “Lap Zero”, here’s a two-part look at where we stand so far in an already wild “Silly Season”
PART 1: The Teams
SO WHAT’S THIS ABOUT A NEW CAR? Nascar is introducing a new basic model of race car in 2022, dubbed the “NextGen” car (think “Gen6” or “The Car of Tomorrow”). It is promising the usual—better racing, cost control, looks cool, etc.—while worrying people about the usual—aero issues, start-up costs, driver safety, etc. Needless to say this will make every team’s current inventory of cars obsolete, so the time is right for new teams (and owners) to enter the sport to get in on the ground floor.
WHAT NEW TEAMS ARE ENTERING CUP IN 2022? So far, there’s two: Kaulig Racing (moving up from Xfinity) and GMS Racing (moving up from Cup).
WHAT ARE THEIR CHARTER SITUATIONS? The Kaulig one is a little confusing—Spire Motorsports has three Charters—the two its run this year for its 7 & 77 cars, plus one they leased out to Trackhouse Racing. Two of those Charters were bought by Kaulig. However, this purchase does NOT include any race cars, equipment, driver contracts, or intellectual property. Spire will continue to run the 7 car, likely as a single car team, in 2022 with Corey Lajoie. GMS, meanwhile, has not yet acquired a Charter.
WHY ARE CHARTERS SO IMPORTANT? Nascar’s current revenue sharing model with race teams gives a bigger cut to Chartered teams. So while it might not be hard for a mid-level or higher team to qualify for a race outside of the Daytona 500, it might be harder to make the finances work without a Charter.
ANY OTHER BIG CHANGES? Well, two of them.
OK, WHICH ONE WAS ANNOUNCED FIRST? Trackhouse Racing has purchased Chip Ganassi Racing’s Nascar operations, effective the end of the season. Unlike the Kaulig-Spire transaction, this WILL include the Ganassi race shop, cars, equipment, and both of its Charters (remember, Trackhouse only leased a Charter for this year). Trackhouse will run as a two-car team in 2022, likely continuing to run one car numbered 99.
AND THE OTHER ONE? The worst-kept secret in Nascar over the past few months has been Brad Keselowski agreeing to join Roush Fenway Racing in an owner/driver role. Made official earlier this week, Keselowski will take an ownership stake, a leadership role, and a Cup ride at RF(K)R.
HOW ABOUT ANY OTHER NEW TEAMS? JR Motorsports has said they’re considering a long-rumored move to Cup Racing, but are stymied by the inability to acquire an all-important Charter. Beyond that, no other new teams seem to have any substantial plans in the works.
YEAH, BUT IS ANYONE EXPANDING? 23XI is said to be wanting to add a second car to their stable for 2022. Toyota has long been rumored to want six full-time Cup teams so this would fill out their roster.
HMM—ANYONE CONTRACTING? Well the 37 car of JTG-D is running this year without a Charter. It remains to be seen if they’ll return in 2022—Chartered or not—or will contract back to a one-car operation (perhaps in tandem with another team).
OK, I THINK I’M CAUGHT UP FOR NOW—WHAT’S THE NEXT “DOMINO TO FALL”? Things are likely to hinge for the rest of the season on Charter transactions—will GMS get one, will 23XI get a second, what will JTG-D do, will Rick Ware Racing sell any, etc. Ultimately it looks like the 2022 Cup field will be a little bit stronger in terms of cars capable of contending for top-20s and occasional wins, while the cars capable of contending for championships will likely stay the same.
WAIT—WHAT DRIVERS ARE MOVING WHERE? Come back next weekend for Part 2!