Kaulig CEO: Dodge is Not “Committed” to 2027 Cup Series Return

What’s Happening?

Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice says that Dodge has still “not committed” to returning to NASCAR in 2027, despite recent reports of the manufacturer nearing a return to the sport on an accelerated timeline.

After months of near silence regarding the future of Dodge in NASCAR, last week served as a breakthrough for fans of the brand, as Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic reported the brand had a breakthrough in its bold pursuit of returning for 2027.

For the most part, fans felt that the goal of returning by next season was bold, even for one of Detroit’s “Big Three” automakers.

Last year, following the announcement that Ram, a fellow Stellantis brand, would return to NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series, Stellantis’ Head of American Brands Tim Kuniskis told FOX Sports’ Kevin Harvick that “everybody’s told me we’re crazy” in regards to making a comeback to the Cup Series by 2027.

While Ram had a somewhat easier accelerated route to the Truck Series, teaming up with Cup Series team Kaulig Racing for a five-truck effort, the jump to Cup is all the more difficult.

While the brand will likely join forces with Kaulig Racing in the Cup Series, unlike the Truck Series, the manufacturer must develop its own engine program, something that is a sizable hurdle in their path.

In fact, during a recent appearance on the Door Bumper Clear podcast, Kaulig Racing CEO Chris Rice shared that the brand has yet to make a commitment to return for the 2027 Cup Series season due to issues surrounding engine development.

“Not as of Today”

Rice, who heads up both Kaulig’s Truck and Cup Series programs, shared that while they would love to have Dodge in the Cup Series this season, as of right now, there is no plan in place for that to happen, though he did reiterate that the iconic brand is working on a return.

“I’ll tell you this. We would love for Dodge to do it, but they have not committed to do it yet,” Rice said. “It’s a lot of fun, I appreciate everybody pushing Dodge to do it, I appreciate everybody talking about it. We would love to have them here. Are we working hard towards it? Absolutely.”

While Rice was not entirely ruling out the reports that Dodge’s accelerated timeline was going as planned, he did add that, at least as of now, Dodge is not coming back in 2027.

“Are they [Dodge] coming? Not as of today.” — Chris Rice, CEO, Kaulig Racing

During this discussion, co-host Tommy Baldwin Jr., who served as the Crew Chief for Dodge’s first Daytona 500 win during their return to NASCAR in the early 2000s, asked Rice about engine development, to which Rice added that it was the reason Dodge left the sport after the 2012 season.

While rumors that Dodge could leave NASCAR surfaced as early as 2008, after Team Penske switched to Ford, which produces engines through Roush Yates Engines, Dodge was left with no team willing to produce Dodge engines for the Cup Series entering the Gen 6 era in 2013.

“If you remember back, Penske went to Ford,” Rice said. “Penske was building the [Dodge] engines. They had no engine. They had nowhere to go. They were done.”

To put a bow on the discussion, Rice said that the gears are in motion on engine development, stressing that a Dodge return is great for everyone in the sport, the teams, the other manufacturers, and Kaulig Racing.

“Are they coming back to NASCAR? I can tell you on this show right now, Kaulig Racing, Matt Kaulig, Chris Rice, everybody at Kaulig Racing would love to have them back,” Rice said. “Yes, immediately, fast as we can go. Get them in the sport. It would be great for the sport. It would be great for Chevrolet. It would be great for Ford. It’d be great for Toyota. More people in here trying to sell cars would be great. But the engine is the issue.”

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