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Noah Gragson has officially been granted his request to be released from his contract at Legacy Motor Club. That means that Legacy Motor Club has 13 races they need to find a driver for the number 42 entry.
Road course ace Mike Rockenfeller will fill in at Indianapolis and Watkins Glen, but those are road courses. Which drivers can Legacy Motor Club and Jimmie Johnson look to for that 42 car for the oval track races?
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Jimmie Johnson’s racing season in the 84 car seems to be over for the time being. He was only slated to run four races, the Daytona 500, COTA, the Coca-Cola 600, and the Chicago Street Race, but he only ran in three. Now that those races are passed, he has no more obligations to run in the 84 car, so he could definitely run the remaining races in the 42 car should he choose to.
The question is whether or not Johnson wants to do it. Given his results in the early season races, he may feel it’s better to bring someone in with more next-gen experience. However, bringing back the greatest NASCAR driver of his generation would bring in some eyeballs.
Josh Berry filled in for Gragson last minute at Michigan. Sure, the result was not great, but, that can be chalked up to finding out he was filling in the weekend of. Berry could fill in and do a good job, and, given the fact that he will be racing in the Next-Gen car next season for Chevy, it could be a good experience for him. The question is whether or not it is in Berry’s best interest to do it.
He and Stewart-Haas Racing are looking for sponsors next season, and, if Berry performs poorly, that could, even if it is very unlikely, negatively affect how he attracts sponsors. It’s also worth noting that the Xfinity Series Playoffs start in a few weeks, and Berry may want to focus fully on winning an Xfinity Championship. Then again, Gragson, ironically enough, filled in for Alex Bowman at Hendrick last season during the Xfinity Series Playoffs, and Gragson made the Championship 4.
It’s already been rumored that John Hunter Nemechek is who Toyota wants to drive the 42 car next season at Legacy Motor Club. This could be a first step to getting him into the car in 2024. Why not get a head start with the driver that you plan on putting in the car?
The issue is the manufacturer. Chevy is still the manufacturer for Legacy Motor Club for the rest of the season. Would they be a fan of bringing Toyota’s replacement in for the rest of the season? There’s reason to believe they would not be.
Grant Enfinger was called upon to replace Noah Gragson at Sonoma earlier this year, and he is already in the Maury Gallagher ecosystem. Enfinger currently drives for GMS Racing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series which Legacy Motor Club co-owner Maury Gallagher owns. It would be easy to bring in someone that people in the shop already know and are familiar with, and Enfinger is a pretty good driver in his own right.
However, he is currently battling in the Truck Series Playoffs. Would he want to dedicate his time to a temporary Cup Series deal at the expense of his Truck Series Championship hopes? Again, Gragson did something similar while in the Xfinity Series Playoffs last season, and he made the Championship 4.
Austin Hill currently runs in the Xfinity Series for Chevrolet, and he currently has no Cup Series obligations to anyone else. He has Cup Series experience for part-time team Beard Motorsports primarily on super speedways. This could be a chance for Hill to get his way into Cup in a unique way.
However, would Richard Childress Racing be okay with this move? Childress would have to okay Hill running a bunch of extra Cup Series races while Hill is trying to win an Xfinity Series Championship. That is what has to be worked out for Hill to run for Legacy Motor Club.
This is something that needs to be solved sooner rather than later for Legacy Motor Club. It’s possible that a combination of these drivers could fill in, or maybe one fills in for all oval races. We will have to see.
