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In late August, Zane Smith found himself unemployed, not even one year into his multi-year contract with Trackhouse Racing. Back on the free agent market, Kevin Harvick said that Smith could have trouble getting back to FRM, as Ford could be the hold-up. However, it sounds like Smith going back to FRM is a real possibility, so what happened?
Zane Smith made a name with Front Row Motorsports in the Truck Series, winning six races and a championship in 2022 and 2023. While there were high hopes that Zane would be at FRM this year, he shockingly signed with Trackhouse Racing to race with Spire Motorsports instead.
This season started poorly for Zane, and despite his recent solid runs, Trackhouse, with just one new charter, announced that the team was parting ways with Zane and bringing Shane Van Gisbergen to the Cup Series in 2025.
While many fans expected and hoped for Zane to return to FRM next season, a shocking source said one major factor stands in the way of Smith’s return to Ford and FRM.
On the Aug. 27 episode of Harvick’s Happy Hour, the topic of Zane Smith and FRM’s future was a brief yet vital topic of discussion. Harvick said that Ford, rather than FRM, “might be frustrated” with the driver’s departure.
“The only thing that I believe Zane’s in a, you know, strange position at this particular point. Because I thought he was going in the… in the, 34 car. I really thought that’s where he would he would wind up. But it sounds like Ford might be frustrated with, you know, a lot of the things that… that happened when he left the Ford camp. And might not… might not be an opportunity there because of the manufacturer.” — Kevin Harvick
If this were true, this would complicate Smith’s position as a free agent, as most of the major rides in the Cup Series were off the board or had plausible rumors as to who their next driver is.
However, a recent report from Jordan Bianchi of the Athletic says that if the sponsorship comes together, a reunion could be in store for Smith and FRM. So, what happened to this reported frustration?
While bringing Smith back is probably the choice of FRM, Harvick worded this carefully, using terms like “it sounds like” and “might not.” However, some fans pointed out that Harvick might have an interesting issue with Smith not signing with FRM.
Harvick owns KHI Management, which manages many NASCAR drivers, including Silly Season candidates Riley Herbst, Ryan Preece, Harrison Burton, Justin Haley, and Corey Lajoie. This connection does sound like a conflict of interest, as Harvick was the only one saying these things.
However, there is evidence suggesting that Harvick was talking just talking racing, not working an angle. While some people would suggest that Kevin said this to affect Zane’s free agency, four of the five KHI drivers already have serious rumors connected to them for 2025:
While none of these are set in stone, credible reports say these teams are these drivers’ likely landing spots. Furthermore, Harvick did say that he thought Smith would return to FRM prior to hearing about this frustration.
Despite everything said, if Smith returns to FRM, this is just another forgotten rumor of Silly Season. If Smith finds himself elsewhere, maybe Harvick was onto something.
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