Ever looked at your life and wondered where you’d be in a year? Two? Five? I’m pretty sure almost everyone thinks about what the future holds. Fame? Fortune? Who will I marry? Will I have kids? Will I get my dream job? Its fun, speculating on where you’ll be. So I thought I’d write an article, about where I think the top teams in Nascar will be in 5 years. Sound fun? Hope so, because it’s what I’m doing. Like always, let’s take it team by team.

Hendrick Motorsports. Long the vetern team of the sport, Hendrick is gradually going to have to bring in fresh talent. Luckily, plenty of that has begun to show, and they’ve been grooming several good drivers.

No 24: Chase Elliot will still drive this one, and he’ll be a champion by then. He’ll also be the team’s veteran, which will make sense in a minute. The 24 will once more be one of the sport’s finest teams.

No. 88: Alex Bowman will be in this ride. Strange thought, I know, but Bowman is Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s hand picked replacement, and he is easily one of the best young guns out there. Jr. will make sure he gets this ride.

No. 48: William Byron. Jimmie Johnson said he has about five years left in him, at the beginning of this year. I think when that five end, young Byron, who stunned in the Truck Series, will be his replacement in the 48. Assuming they don’t change the number.

No. 5: Justin Allgier is good, and he nearly won the Xfinity Series Championship last Fall. With continued improvement, and Kasey Kahne’s apparent lack thereof, I think Allgier is the most fitting driver for the No. 5 car.

 

Stewart-Hass Racing. Once Hendrick’s younger counterpart, this younger team has become one of the finest in Nascar, and has two championships to show it. Like Hendrick, though, it will need some more young talent in the future.

No. 4: Cole Custer is SHR’s lone Xfinity driver, and a skilled one at that. With Kevin Harvick not getting any younger, you have to assume he will step out in the next couple years, like Tony Stewart. Young Custer may be the man to fill those shoes.

No. 10: Danica Patrick will never lack a ride or sponsorship, and Stewart-Hass knows this. However, time is passing, and by the time the next five years are up, Danica will need to have made something happen.

No. 14: Clint Bowyer has proven himself thus far at SHR, and will be a championship contender by now. Maybe even a winner. The 14 will be in top condition.

No. 41: Kurt Busch will now have taken the role as the elder at SHR, and will still be a winner. A championship seems possible, and with Harvick gone, he’ll be the team’s most successful driver.

 

Joe Gibbs Racing. Long time team, this squad, like all others, has been training new talent, and may be needing it with Matt Kenseth reaching the end of his career. The team will always be a powerhouse, possibly more than ever in five years.

No. 11: Denny Hamlin. Once a Gibbs racer, always a Gibbs racer, Hamlin has made a career in the 11 car, and will continue to do so. However, that championship is still elusive.

No. 18: Kyle Busch will become the sport’s best driver as more of the elders retire. More championships are down the road, and possibly his 200th career Nascar win. ‘Rowdy’ will just keep winning.

No. 19: Daniel Suarez. He has risen through Nasar quickly, and proven himself everywhere. The Cup Series will be harder, but he’ll conquer it. Maybe not in the next five years, but soon.

No. 20: Matt Tifft has been through a lot on his Nascar journey, but is one of Gibbs Racing’s best young drivers. And he is an ideal replacement for Kenseth in the 20 car.

 

Richard Childress Racing. Once a Nascar great, this team has struggled to find it’s footing without Dale Earnhardt. Now, with young talent on the rise, it may become a force to be reckoned with.

No. 3: Austin Dillon has been in this car for a couple years, and has begun to find his footing.  He will become a champion, just maybe not in the next five years. However, wins will begin to come in for the 3 team.

No. 31: Brandon Jones is a skilled young driver in the Xfinity Series, and when Ryan Newman finally calls it quits, he’ll be an ideal man to fill the veteran’s shoes.

No. 33: A change from the 27 car to 33 will include a driver change from Paul Menard to Ty Dillon. Austin’s little brother, he has tested the Cup waters with several teams, but ultimately will land with his grandfather’s team, in the 33 car. Wins will come, with some practice.

No. 27: And if RCR manages to make it back to four teams, Daniel Hemric is next in line. Watch out for this Xfinity rookie.

 

Penske Racing. Once the bride maid but never the bride, this team finally got a championship a few years back with Brad Keslowski. It will continue to thrive in the next several years, and maybe even grow.

No. 2: Brad Keslowski has brought the 2 to life, and has amazing talent. With sly fox crew chief Paul Wolfe, this team will not only win races, but championships as well.

No. 12: By this time, Penske will begin considering a third team, and various young drivers will begin practicing in a no. 12 team.

No. 22: As much as I hate to say it, Joey Logano isn’t going anywhere. Wins will continue to come, but he may struggle to beat the up and coming talent swarming the Cup Series.

 

Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates. A legendary team owner, Chip Ganssi has yet to get a Nascar Cup Series championship. However, with the reboot the team has gotten as of late, that will change.

No. 1: Jamie Mcmurray will have a slight rebound as his career winds down. A couple more victories, a few more Chase appearances, and maybe a championship run. This team is good.

No. 42: Kyle Larson is the best driver on the circuit right now, and he’s in his early twenties. That skill will grow, and he’ll claim CGR’s first championship. Also, he’ll bag several wins as well.

No. 41: I have to assume that Ganassi will want to make room for Brenan Poole, the talented young Xfinity drive, at some point. Maybe becoming a three car team again will make that a possibility.

 

Roush-Fenway Racing. Once a five car unstoppable force, this team is down to two. However, a quiet resurgence has begun. This team is inching closer to winning contention. Their back.

No. 6: Trevor Bayne is becoming the leading force in RFR, and is quietly consistent. Wins have been getting closer, so keep an eye out.

No. 16: Ryan Reed will continue to the Cup Series in the no. 16. Reed may have some trouble with consistency, but his prowess at Daytona is outstanding. Fear the 16, assuming it comes back.

No. 17: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is flashier than Bayne, but less consistent. The 17 is getting closer to wins than the 6, and the win will help. Still, he will need to work on consistency if he is to better his teammate Trevor.

No. 99: This one seems unlikely, but Darrel Wallace Jr. may be in for a Cup ride. He’s not to bad of a racer, but Cup rides are hard to come by.

 

Furniture Row Racing. This team has grown quickly, and its alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing has just made it stronger. They are getting closer and closer to a first Cup crown, and it will come sooner or later.

No. 78: Martin Truex Jr. will be nearing the end of his career by now, but he will be the proud winner of several more races, and probably a championship to boot. The 78 is where this team started, and where it shall first reach the pinnacle of Nascar.

No. 77: Heck, Eric Jones is going to tear it up out here. Jones is already running near the front, and with a couple years of experience, he’ll be a threat weekly. The 77 will be in it to win it.

 

JTG Daugherty Racing. A slowly growing team, they have a single win in the Cup series, and two talented drivers to boot. Speed has been growing, and so will the win total.

No. 37: Chris Buescher took over this new ride for 2017, and with Roush-Fenway occupied, I have to imagine he’ll stay here for some time. After all, its a team that has won more recently than 2013.

No. 47: AJ Allmendinger has become the heart and soul of JTG Daugherty Racing, and has carried it on his back since 2012. He got the team’s first win in 2014, and I can’t help but believe that more are to follow. The 47 is a force to fear in the road course game, and a worthy opponent on the short tracks.

 

Wood Brothers Racing. Nacar’s oldest and easily most respected team, it has gradually made a resurgence with its alliance to Penske Racing. Better cars and better drivers are setting this team up as a title contender.

No. 21: The most historic number in Nascar (sorry Richard Petty), the honor that comes with bearing this number o your door is beyond compare. Ryan Blaney holds that honor, and will be a mighty force in Nascar. Blaney will lead the team to poles, wins, and probably championships, and in the near future. 5 years from now? Oh please, he’ll have at least ten wins by then, and he’ll have been a Chase contender more than once.

 

Richard Petty Racing. Long ago, this team was Nascar’s finest. Now, it is little more than a memorial to the olden ages of Nascar. However, the team fights on, and will never surrender. They always have had, and always will have, the heart of the founders of Nascar.

No. 43: Aric Almirola. Hard to come by an amazing racer these days, but Aric is a good one. He never stops trying to win, but I don’t see that happening with this team. Still, he will fight on.

So, what do you think? I make my guesses, but we all know that guessing is as reliable as casting Nicholas Cage. Or so I’ve heard. (I’ve never had the privilege of seeing him in a bad movie. National Treasure wasn’t to bad) I look forward to the future, not because it means I’m older and able to drive on my own (Although that has appeal) but because of its possibilities. Like a river, time flows by. It flows beautifully sometimes, and roughly at others. It makes unexpected turns, or goes on for ages without adjustment. Its unpredictable. Which is just the way I like it.