A team every NASCAR fan has an eye on this Silly Season is Trackhouse Racing, a team with too many drivers and not enough cars. One option that even some within the industry have suggested is a merger between Trackhouse and Kaulig Racing. Could this actually happen, and would it make any sense for Trackhouse and Kaulig?
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Both Trackhouse and Kaulig are not in ideal situations as far as 2025 is concerned. But, both are in those situations for entirely different reasons.
Kaulig Racing is simply not performing well. As of this writing, both cars sit 30th and 32nd in Cup Series Owner’s Points. In the Xfinity Series, Kaulig is still winless with their prized free agent Josh Williams sitting 21st in points with only 1 top-10 finish.
Despite this, Team President Chris Rice said this offseason that he does not anticipate the team selling charters “in the next 24 months”, but, they are looking for teams to partner with. Enter Justin Marks and Trackhouse, whom Kaulig partnered with this off-season.
Trackhouse has too many drivers under contract and not enough seats to put them in. With Zane Smith out of a ride at Spire and SVG waiting in the wings, Trackhouse has two drivers who could theoretically be looking for Cup Series seats in 2025. Trackhouse also has Connor Zilisch under contract, who likely needs a ride in the lower series in 2025, so, that’s even more incentive to move these drivers to Cup.
Trackhouse needs more seats, and those seats could come through buying another charter. This is an expensive endeavor, and one that Trackhouse has to compete with other race teams with equally deep pockets.
Should they not find a charter, they could look at a team they’ve partnered with this season, Kaulig Racing. Would it make sense for the two to merge?
This could make sense for both sides for multiple reasons. It could help Kaulig from a performance standpoint and it could give Trackhouse some much-needed extra seats.
Kaulig Racing is not a “Tier One” Chevy team, and Chevy is likely not adding any more teams to that list anytime soon. Kaulig is also housed on Richard Childress Racing’s campus, so, Kaulig doesn’t even have their own property to house their team. If they want to venture out from under that umbrella, they may need to get creative, so, why not merge with a proven, race-winning organization?
For Trackhouse, it allows them to add extra seats under their roof. Instead of having 2 race teams, they could have 6 with 4 Cup Series teams and 2 Xfinity Series teams. Trackhouse could bring all current drivers into the fold with this method.
In an ideal world, you could put SVG and Zane Smith in Cup alongside Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez. The Xfinity Series rides could be Connor Zilisch alongside A.J. Allmendinger and either Josh Williams or Daniel Hemric. A driver might have to depart in this scenario, and the two most likely are Josh Williams or Daniel Suarez due to recent performances.
Yes, some tough decisions may still need to be made, but, Trackhosue would go from 2 cars to 7. Kaulig Racing could combine its resources with that of a Tier One Chevrolet team, which would be a big win for Kaulig.
Could it work? Yes, it could work, if the teams can make the dollars, cents, and driver contracts line up. Will this happen? That remains to be seen.
