How Long Should Drivers Stay in Lower Series Before Moving Up to Cup?
What’s Happening? The debate about the right time for a driver to jump up to the Cup Series was ignited…
Menu
Rajah Caruth is in his second full-time season in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and he’s having a breakout season. Like all lower series drivers who have success, many wonder how soon we could see him in the Cup Series, and we are here to answer the question today.
As we dive into in the article below, the sweet spot for drivers is typically three to four full-time seasons in the lower series before jumping up to the Cup Series. Of the 12 drivers on the Cup Series grid that debuted in the 2020s, eight spent that much time in the lower series.
What’s Happening? The debate about the right time for a driver to jump up to the Cup Series was ignited…
Caruth is in his second full-time season, meaning he’s at least a year early to jump up to Cup. The two drivers of the 12 we referred to who spent fewer than three seasons in the lower series are Ty Gibbs and Josh Berry.
Gibbs won 11 Xfinity Series races and a Championship in one full-time and one part-time season. Berry was a late bloomer who spent most of his adulthood racing late models and had more racing experience than some full-time Cup Series drivers.
Caruth isn’t at that point, and there’s no need to rush him to the Cup Series. For some drivers, spending more time in the lower series to develop can help, and Caruth’s connections make that more apparent.
HendrickCars.com is the primary sponsor for Caruth for the duration of the season. That, combined with this comment from Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon to HBCU Gameday, means Caruth is on HMS’ radar for the future.
Rick [Hendrick] and I talked about it the other day, we’ve seen him several times and whether it’s at the banquet or at the Hall of Fame, and just every time he’s coming up, shaking our hands, he’s well put together, well spoken, and very driven, very passionate about it. When you see that in a young driver, that’s what you are looking for.
Jeff Gordon
Now, Caruth’s issue is that there is nowhere to go at HMS in the near future. Here is the contract status of all Hendrick drivers, as this is one of the few teams that releases contract terms.
Each of these drivers is fairly young and deep in their prime. William Byron, the last driver Hendrick supported through the pipeline, has won multiple races three years in a row and made the Championship 4 in 2023. Larson is arguably the best race car driver in the world. Elliott is a Champion, and he’s found his form again after a tough 2023. Bowman was the driver people were unsure of, but his win at the Chicago Street Race has undoubtedly bought him some time.
Either way, Caruth cannot jump up to Cup at HMS for a while, likely in 2026 at the earliest, and that even depends on how the current drivers are well within their prime. Caruth is not the only driver HMS is interested in, as Rick Hendrick still co-owns JR Motorsports. Jeff Gordon was also seen talking to Connor Mosack following the Chicago Street Race, but Mosack still doesn’t have a full-time ride.
Caruth is the one where HMS has the most invested at the moment, and that’s what’s interesting to watch. Maybe Caruth could work his way through the ranks at Spire as well, but that depends on the future of Carson Hocevar and Corey LaJoie.
Caruth will not join the Cup Series anytime soon, but he will be one to watch as the years go on.
What do you think about all this? Let us know on Discord or X what your take is, and don’t forget you can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and even YouTube.
