While there are only a couple of questions out there regarding the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series silly season, an interesting development happened last week when Gene Haas revealed that Cole Custer‘s seat may not be concrete as far as the No. 41 car is concerned for 2023.
While on the grid at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 16 Haas mentioned that there are two options to drive the No. 41 Stewart-Haas Ford in 2023.
Gene Haas on grid said he wants Cole Custer to return to 41 next yr but Tony Stewart wants to give Ryan Preece a shot so TBD for 2023 … Haas also said Kevin Harvick has indicated he won’t return after 2023 (his deal up) but Haas trying to convince him to do an extension.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) October 16, 2022
Haas’ comments were certainly interesting because Cole Custer’s dad, Joe Custer, is Gene’s right hand man when it comes to the organization. However, his co-owner wants to go in a different direction. While the team is not yet certain on who will drive the car next season, we have Anthony Damcott and Stephen Stumpf giving their thoughts on who they would hire to drive the No. 41 car in 2023.
Keep Custer in the No. 41, give Preece a full-time Xfinity Series gig with SHR
The elephant in the room is that Cole Custer has been achieving well below expectations in his third Cup Series season. While Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick — fellow drivers from the 2020 rookie class — have won multiple races this season, Custer only has three top 10s. He currently sits 26th in points, which is the same as his finish in 2021.
However, Stewart-Haas Racing has been on a downturn. The team has only won four races since the start of 2021, a far cry from the nine that Kevin Harvick alone won in 2020. Custer has still been the weakest of the four, but it’s an explanation for why his 2020 rookie season has appeared as his best so far.
But even if Custer were to be replaced, there aren’t many options available. The biggest name available for 2023 was Kyle Busch, but SHR lost out to Richard Childress Racing for his services. A disappointing miss when considering that Harvick was open to having his former rival as a teammate.
As of late October, Front Row Motorsports, Wood Brothers Racing, Live Fast Motorsports, Rick Ware Racing and the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing car (which is almost certainly going to Ty Gibbs) have yet to announce their 2023 lineups. Michael McDowell would potentially be worth pursuing after his career year…
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