Kasey Kahne becomes another puzzle piece for 2018 NASCAR season
Hendrick Motorsports divesting itself of the final season of Kasey Kahne’s contract on Monday adds another facet to an already strange free agency period for NASCAR drivers and teams.
It’s strange in that there is a bounty of drivers – of various levels of experience and accomplishment – and race cars currently in limbo. The common thread for both is sponsorship. So, there’s something normal, at least.
Here are some of the other unplaced puzzle pieces for the 2018 season:
– Monster Energy: The beverage company is crucial in two ways. It has a deadline this year on enacting a two-year option for 2019-20 to continue as the top-series title sponsor, which has apparently also impacted whether or in what level it would return to sponsor the No. 41 Ford of former series champion Kurt Busch at Stewart-Haas Racing. Last week, SHR opted to not renew Busch’s 2018 option, making him a free agent. Team executives strongly assert their expectation he will return, but Busch said this weekend he's considering other options in a process that’s becoming public and feels awkward, especially since these types of contract maneuvers are made by teams to re-sign an athlete at a reduced rate. In the broader landscape, Monster not returning as series title sponsor after one season would be troubling for the sport.
– No. 5 Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports: It’s an unexploited resource at a team that has won 12 Cup titles. Kahne won six times at Hendrick Motorsports since 2012, ending a 102-race winless stretch in the Brickyard 400. Earning a playoff berth was not enough to save his job and expectations will and should be high for his successor, even with Hendrick in transition with seven-time and defending series champion Jimmie Johnson – who is responsible for all of the team’s titles and 83 of 146 wins since 2002 - now 41 and 24-year-old Alex Bowman replacing Dale Earnhardt Jr. Greatness has been predicted by many for Chase Elliott, 21, but he’s not won a Cup race in his second season replacing four-time champion Jeff Gordon. Sponsorship must be secured to replace Farmers Insurance and Great Clips on the No. 5, which will likely dictate the salary and the experience level of Kahne’s replacement. Either way, this is a prized ride with a power team.
– Matt Kenseth: The 45-year-old former series champion has improved statistically this season as the Toyota contingent has swelled, finishing a game second to Martin Truex Jr. on Sunday at Watkins Glen International. He followed consecutive finishes of fourth, fifth and ninth with his best result of the season to reinforce the current-and-soon-to-be-former driver of the No. 20 Toyota at Joe Gibbs Racing as the most immediate reliable contributor on the market. Assuming all situations are sponsor-driven, his future landing spot – he has not expressed concern about landing one in recent interviews – would likely be contingent on dollars and duration of a deal. He would have fit well in replacing Earnhardt Jr., and he might be an even better fit in replacing Kahne, allowing highly touted 19-year-old William Byron to race a formative second Xfinity Series season in 2018.
– William Byron: Second in Xfinity points and the top winner (3) among series regulars, he told USA TODAY Sports last week he expected a Cup opportunity “sooner rather than later.” Many feel he – like most – could benefit from another developmental series. Opportunity and need may preclude that. Hendrick’s first job opening of the season figured to be the domino to trigger the market, but wasn’t. Perhaps it’s second will be.
PHOTOS: 2017 NASCAR race winners
