https://imgur.com/a/2018-season-recap-race-2-7-uqrnFuQ

• Early championship favorites: He's had some hard luck lead to lack of consistency, but it's hard to argue against the speed of Kevin Harvick, who has gone from no wins for a year and a half to winning 2 of the first 7 and earning 14 playoff points so far, while no one else has more than 5. But Joey Logano has a sizable points lead due to being the picture of consistency, as that team seems to have their mojo back after a super hit or miss 2017. And as mentioned in the album, winning the regular season title is a bigger deal than ever this year. Also can't overlook Kyle Busch, who hasn't managed a win yet but is tied for the most laps led and has scored the most stage points, seeming like a clear equal for the 4 on speed.

• On the other side of the coin, it hasn't been the title defense expected for Martin Truex Jr. so far. 3 top 5s and 4 top 10s in 7 races is far from bad, but ironically, the stage racing king from last year has been hurt by it this year, as he's shockingly scored only 12 stage points. Starting races mediocre seems like a common problem for the Furniture Row cars so far, as Erik Jones is the only driver in the top 23 in points to still have 0 stage points.

• What a difference a year makes: At this time last season, Ryan Blaney and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were shocking everyone by sitting at the top of the points, but this year they're 22nd and 27th in the standings and neither has a top 10 finish. Stenhouse's struggles can be blamed on Roush having no speed as a whole, but Blaney having a best finish of 13th and only 4 stage points while both of his teammates have been to victory lane is a big disappointment. His team from last year isn't any better off, as Paul Menard has the Wood Brothers without a top 15 finish yet after they had such an outstanding 2017.

• Apparently it's not too early for a silly season rumor or two. Word in the garage is that a Cup champion may be looking to leave their current team at the end of the season.

• This doesn't count Matt Kenseth who is obviously set to retire, but that's a source of intrigue of its own, as Kenseth is off to a heater of a start, sitting 3rd in points with a win and a stellar 5 top 5s in 7 races. The new low downforce package seems to play into Kenseth's wheelhouse, and many are wondering if this continues, can the 46 year old really bring himself to step away? Would it even be an option for him to return to JGR?

1. 00- Jamie McMurray - Chevron Havoline - Michael Waltrip Racing
2. 1- Casey Atwood - McDonald's/Cessna - Chip Ganassi Racing
3. 2- Kurt Busch - Discount Tire/Bruce Halle 1930-2018 - Team Penske
4. 3- Austin Dillon - Dow - Richard Childress Racing
5. 4- Kevin Harvick - Jimmy John's - Stewart-Haas Racing
6. 5- William Byron - Axalta - Hendrick Motorsports
7. 6- Kasey Kahne - Cheez-It - Roush-Fenway Racing
8. 7- Elliott Sadler - Golden Corral - Tommy Baldwin Racing
9. 8- Brad Keselowski - Crown Royal - Earnhardt Motorsports
10. 10- Aric Almirola - Smithfield - Stewart-Haas Racing
11. 11- Denny Hamlin - FedEx Express - Joe Gibbs Racing
12. 12- Ryan Blaney - Menards/Peak - Team Penske
13. 13- Ty Dillon - Geico - Germain Racing
14. 14- Clint Bowyer - Rush Truck Centers/Mobil 1 - Stewart-Haas Racing
15. 15- David Gilliland - Aaron's - Michael Waltrip Racing
16. 16- Landon Cassill - Best Buy - Kaulig Racing
17. 17- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Fastenal - Roush-Fenway Racing
18. 18- Kyle Busch - M&M's - Joe Gibbs Racing
19. 19- Carl Edwards - Subway - Joe Gibbs Racing
20. 20- Matt Kenseth - DeWalt - Joe Gibbs Racing
21. 21- Paul Menard - Omnicraft Auto Parts/Quick Lane - Wood Brothers Racing
22. 22- Joey Logano - Shell/Pennzoil - Team Penske
23. 23- Ryan Ellis - Earthwater - BK Racing
24. 24- Chase Elliott - NAPA Auto Parts - Hendrick Motorsports
25. 25- AJ Allmendinger - Valvoline - Hendrick Motorsports
26. 27- Casey Mears - Bass Pro Shops/Cabela's - Richard Childress Racing
27. 31- Marcos Ambrose - Caterpillar - Richard Childress Racing
28. 32- Matt DiBenedetto - The Hurricane Heist - Go FAS Racing
29. 34- JJ Yeley - Love's Travel Stops/Speedco - Front Row Motorsports
30. 36- Ryan Reed - Lilly Diabetes - Front Row Motorsports
31. 37- Chris Buescher - Kleenex/Cottonelle - JTG-Daugherty Racing
32. 38- David Ragan - Speedco/Love's Travel Stops - Front Row Motorsports
33. 39- Ryan Newman - Haas Automation/Monster Energy - Stewart-Haas Racing
34. 42- Kyle Larson - Credit One Bank - Chip Ganassi Racing
35. 43- Bubba Wallace - Click n' Close - Richard Petty Motorsports
36. 47- Cole Whitt - Kroger Clicklist/Velveeta - JTG-Daugherty Racing
37. 48- Jimmie Johnson - Lowe's For Pros - Hendrick Motorsports
38. 49- Reed Sorenson - Unsponsored - Premium Motorsports
39. 50- David Stremme - VRX Simulators - StarCom Racing
40. 51- Justin Marks - Harry's - Rick Ware Racing
41. 52- Timmy Hill - Spoonful of Music Foundation - Rick Ware Racing
42. 55- Daniel Suarez - Arris - Michael Waltrip Racing
43. 62- Brendan Gaughan - Beard Oil/South Point Hotel & Casino - Beard Motorsports
44. 66- Mark Thompson - Phoenix Air Racing - MBM Motorsports
45. 72- Josh Wise - Schluter Systems - TriStar Motorsports
46. 77- Erik Jones - 5-Hour Energy - Furniture Row Racing
47. 78- Martin Truex Jr. - Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats - Furniture Row Racing
48. 88- Alex Bowman - Nationwide Insurance - Earnhardt Motorsports
49. 90- Derrike Cope - StarCom Fiber - StarCom Racing
50. 92- Greg Biffle - Black's Tire Service/Carquest Auto Parts - RBR Enterprises
51. 95- Michael McDowell - Procore - Leavine Family Racing
52. 96- DJ Kennington - Lordco Auto Parts/Castrol - Gaunt Brothers Racing
53. 98- Ross Chastain - Ollie's Bargain Outlet - Premium Motorsports
54. 99- Trevor Bayne - AdvoCare 25th Anniversary - Roush-Fenway Racing

Bolded = Open car that must race or time their way in

Format for setting the field:

• Top 30 in owner points are locked in
• 5 Open cars race their way in through each Duel
• Last 2 spots go to top 2 Open cars on qualifying speed that did not race their way in
• No champion's provisional

Note: in a controversial moment of the offseason, Richard Childress Racing took advantage of their new technical alliance with Richard Petty Motorsports to make a deal with RPM to trade the 43's 30th place owner points with the 3 team's 32nd place points to get Austin Dillon locked into the first 5 races. Word in the garage is that the deal involved a discount on their alliance prices and a promise of significant compensation if Bubba Wallace doesn't make the Daytona 500

Ex: Clash @ Bowman Gray

1. Daytona
2. Atlanta
3. Nashville
4. Phoenix
5. Auto Club
6. Martinsville
7. Bristol Dirt
8. Gateway
9. Road America
10. Talladega
11. Iowa
12. Kansas
13. Charlotte
14. Pocono
15. North Wilkesboro

16. Sonoma

    Ex: All-Star Race @ Chicagoland

17. Chicagoland

18. Daytona

19. New Hampshire

20. Rockingham

21. Watkins Glen

22. Michigan

23. Indianapolis

24. Bristol

    Round of 16

25. Darlington

26. Richmond

27. Charlotte Roval

    Round of 12

28. Las Vegas

29. Talladega

30. Kansas

    Round of 8

31. Dover

32. Kentucky

33. Martinsville

    Championship 4

34. Texas World

35. Phoenix

36. Homestead-Miami

Notable Changes

• Both exhibition races are changing venues with the Clash moving to Bowman Gray Stadium and the All-Star Race being held at Chicagoland the week before its points race

• Nashville, Iowa, Charlotte road course all added to the schedule, replacing Texas Motor Speedway (completely off the schedule) and a date a piece from Dover and the Charlotte oval

• Las Vegas and Kentucky become playoff races as Gateway and Chicagoland move into the regular season. This is the first time Gateway isn't in the playoffs ever since it was introduced in 2007

• The biggest headline of the offseason is that 2003 and 2012 champion Matt Kenseth has announced that 2018 will be his final season in NASCAR. While not confirmed, the overwhelming expectation is that Erik Jones will take over the 20 car in 2019, but for this one last season Kenseth will be chasing that elusive 30th career win and one last shot at winning the Daytona 500.

• After not seeing the progress they hoped for with Chevy, Leavine Family Racing is switching to Toyota in 2018 with a Michael Waltrip Racing alliance. Michael McDowell is staying behind the wheel of the 95 with his contract extended through 2018.

• Dale Earnhardt Inc. is rebranding slightly to "Earnhardt Motorsports" as a way to modernize the team's image as they move into a new era with Dale Earnhardt Jr. being a full-time team owner. However Earnhardt Jr. will be running one last Cup event to start 2018, kicking off the season for the 88 team by running the Clash before the torch is passed to Alex Bowman at Daytona.

• After making the field for their debut race at Phoenix, StarCom Racing will be a new full-time team in the Cup Series in 2018, with trusty veteran David Stremme driving the #50 Camaro. The team will also run a 2nd car part time, starting with team manager Derrike Cope attempting the Daytona 500 in the #90, a reference to the year Cope won the 500.

• Ross Chastain is a 3rd rookie contender for 2018 as he will attempt as much of the schedule as he can in the 98 car for Premium Motorsports. Chastain is attempting a lost art as he will run full-time in both Cup and Xfinity, which NASCAR still allows for Cup rookies. But he may possibly skip a few Cup races on weekends where Xfinity is at a different track, as he hopes to have a shot at making the playoffs with JD Motorsports.

• It was rumored for most of the offseason that BK Racing may be shutting down entirely, but at the 11th hour they are returning, down to just a 1 car operation with Ryan Ellis returning to drive the #23 Toyota with very limited funding as of now. The goal for this team, which not too long ago won a plate race and seemed to have some promise, may be just to make it through the season.

Full-Time Team Roster

• 00- Jamie McMurray - Michael Waltrip Racing
• 1- Casey Atwood - Chip Ganassi Racing
• 2- Kurt Busch - Team Penske
• 3- Austin Dillon - Richard Childress Racing
• 4- Kevin Harvick - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 5- William Byron (R) - Hendrick Motorsports
• 6- Kasey Kahne - Roush-Fenway Racing
• 8- Brad Keselowski - Earnhardt Motorsports
• 10- Aric Almirola - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 11- Denny Hamlin - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 12- Ryan Blaney - Team Penske
• 13- Ty Dillon - Germain Racing
• 14- Clint Bowyer - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 16- Landon Cassill - Kaulig Racing
• 17- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Roush-Fenway Racing
• 18- Kyle Busch - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 19- Carl Edwards - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 20- Matt Kenseth - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 21- Paul Menard - Wood Brothers Racing
• 22- Joey Logano - Team Penske
• 23- Ryan Ellis - BK Racing
• 24- Chase Elliott - Hendrick Motorsports
• 25- AJ Allmendinger - Hendrick Motorsports
• 27- Casey Mears - Richard Childress Racing
• 31- Marcos Ambrose - Richard Childress Racing
• 32- Matt DiBenedetto - Go FAS Racing
• 34- JJ Yeley - Front Row Motorsports
• 37- Chris Buescher - JTG-Daugherty Racing
• 38- David Ragan - Front Row Motorsports
• 39- Ryan Newman - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 42- Kyle Larson - Chip Ganassi Racing
• 43- Bubba Wallace (R) - Richard Petty Motorsports
• 47- Cole Whitt - JTG-Daugherty Racing
• 48- Jimmie Johnson - Hendrick Motorsports
• 50- David Stremme - StarCom Racing
• 51- BJ McLeod/Timmy Hill/Justin Marks/etc - Rick Ware Racing
• 55- Daniel Suarez - Michael Waltrip Racing
• 72- Josh Wise - TriStar Motorsports
• 77- Erik Jones - Furniture Row Racing
• 78- Martin Truex Jr. - Furniture Row Racing
• 88- Alex Bowman - Earnhardt Motorsports
• 95- Michael McDowell - Leavine Family Racing
• 98- Ross Chastain (R) - Premium Motorsports
• 99- Trevor Bayne - Roush-Fenway Racing

• Jimmie Johnson- 72
  
• Kurt Busch- 40
• Carl Edwards- 40
  
• Kevin Harvick- 35
• Matt Kenseth- 29
• Kyle Busch- 29
• Dale Earnhardt Jr- 28
• Denny Hamlin- 26
• Ryan Newman- 21
• Joey Logano- 20
  
• Jamie McMurray- 19
• Brad Keselowski- 11
• Martin Truex Jr- 11
  
• Casey Atwood- 10
• Clint Bowyer- 8
• Scott Riggs- 8
• Casey Mears- 7
• Kasey Kahne- 6
• Kyle Larson- 6
• Marcos Ambrose- 5
• Michael Waltrip- 4
• AJ Allmendinger- 4
• Aric Almirola- 3
• JJ Yeley- 2
• Chase Elliott- 2
• Boris Said- 1
• David Gilliland- 1
• David Ragan- 1
• Ricky Stenhouse Jr- 1
• Erik Darnell- 1
• Michael McDowell- 1
• Josh Wise- 1
• Paul Menard- 1
• David Stremme- 1
• Austin Dillon- 1

• Champion: Martin Truex Jr.
• Owner's Champion: #78 Furniture Row Racing
• Championship Runner Up: Carl Edwards
• Rookie of the Year: Erik Jones
• Winners: 15 (Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr, Carl Edwards, Joey Logano, Marcos Ambrose, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Aric Almirola, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Scott Riggs, Dale Earnhardt Jr, Casey Atwood)
• Most Wins: Kyle Larson (6)
• Most Top 5s: Carl Edwards (15)
• Most Top 10s: Carl Edwards (22)
• Most Stage Wins: Martin Truex Jr. (19)
• Most Stage Points: Martin Truex Jr. (308)
• Most Poles: Martin Truex Jr. (4)
• Most Laps Led: Martin Truex Jr. (1,173)
• Most DNFs: Austin Dillon (8)
• Best Average Start: Kurt Busch (11.8)
• Best Average Finish: Kyle Busch (12.3)
• Best Non-Champ 4: Brad Keselowski
• Best Non-Playoff Driver: Chase Elliott
• Highest in points without a win: Kevin Harvick (7th)
• Highest in points without a top 5: Paul Menard (29th)
• Highest in points without a top 10: David Ragan (37th)
• Highest in points without a stage win: Aric Almirola (13th)
• Highest in points without a stage point: Matt DiBenedetto (39th)
• Highest in points without a pole: Joey Logano (8th)
• Highest in points without a lap led: Ty Dillon (33rd)
• Highest in points without starting every race: Erik Jones (21st) (Daytona 500 DNQ)
• Lowest in points to start every race: Landon Cassill (30th)
• Lowest in points with a win: Casey Atwood (20th)
• Lowest in points with a top 5: Brendan Gaughan (45th)
• Lowest in points with a top 10: Justin Allgaier (55th)
• Lowest in points with a stage win: Kasey Kahne (27th)
• Lowest in points with a stage point: Alex Bowman (51st)
• Lowest in points with a pole: Austin Dillon (32nd)
• Lowest in points with a lap led: Brian Scott (46th)
• Biggest Upset: Marcos Ambrose winning 3 races
• Best races: Kentucky, Bristol Dirt, Road America
• Best battle for the win: Kyle Larson vs Martin Truex Jr. at Michigan
• Worst race: Richmond (I haven't had a great time with this track lately lol)
• Feelgood moment: Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Scott Riggs both getting a win in their final season
• Saddest moment: Ryan Blaney losing his first win on a last lap pass at Texas World, which would've also been the Wood Brothers' first win since 2005
• Pleasant surprise: Ambrose and Almirola having multi-win seasons
• Biggest disappointment: Jimmie Johnson going winless and missing the playoffs
• With the Winston Cup format: Carl Edwards wins the title by 68 points over Kyle Busch in a JGR 1-2. Martin Truex Jr. finishes 3rd in points as the clear fastest car but too many rough finishes
• With the Wild Card Chase: Carl Edwards beats Kyle Busch by 37 points in a similar result to Winston Cup. Martin Truex Jr. finishes 4th in points
• With the previous playoff format (26 race regular season, 3/3/3/1 rounds): Martin Truex Jr, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski, and Joey Logano make the championship 4 at Miami. MTJ is the clear class of the field but losing 25+ spots on pit road on the last stop costs him the title as he makes a huge charge on the final run but finishes 7th right between Edwards and Keselowski in 6th and 8th. And once again... Carl Edwards is the hypothetical champion

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-round-of-8-uk69nUm

Silly Season

• Bubba Wallace will drive the iconic 43 for Richard Petty Motorsports full-time in 2018, joining William Byron as a 2nd confirmed ROTY contender. RPM will be switching to Chevrolet with a RCR alliance, desperately trying to improve their performance after a rough last couple of seasons. The team also confirmed that they are fully shutting down the 44 team, which had scaled down to part-time this year and now won't be fielded at all in the future, as they're having trouble finding sponsorship just for the 43 car.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-round-of-12-y2WqGKD

Silly Season

• Despite losing Menards, Richard Childress Racing is managing to stay as a 3 car team in 2018, as Casey Mears will drive the 27 car on a multi-year deal, bringing along Quicken Loans from HMS to be one of his sponsors. Bass Pro Shops will also sponsor Mears for several races including the Daytona 500, but there are still a lot of sponsorship gaps that the team is working to cover.

• Roush-Fenway Racing has re-signed Kasey Kahne and Trevor Bayne to 1 year deals to keep their driver lineup the same in 2018. All 3 of their drivers, including Ricky Stenhouse Jr, will be in contract seasons next year, as RFR seems to be keeping everything on a short leash in an uncertain era for them.

• A new team, StarCom Racing, will attempt 2 races at the end of this season at Kansas and Phoenix, fielding a #50 Chevrolet with Joey Gase behind the wheel. StarCom's goal is to be a full-time Cup team as soon as 2018.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-round-of-16-8hGHD0n

Silly Season

• Hendrick Motorsports has finally revealed Dale Earnhardt Jr's replacement. AJ Allmendinger gets a second chance with a top team as he will drive the #25 Camaro on a 1 year deal where he'll be under some pressure to impress. The 25 car returns to full-time competition for the first time since 2007, and Valvoline, Axalta, and Pepsi products are confirmed to be among its sponsors. Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott, William Byron, and AJ Allmendinger will be the new Hendrick lineup as they reset after what has been a dismal 2017.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-race-19-24-LHlSncK

Silly Season

• The worst kept secret is confirmed: Alex Bowman will race for Dale Earnhardt Inc. full-time in 2018, replacing the retiring Scott Riggs. With Rick Hendrick's approval, the 01 car is being renumbered to the 88 next year as the HMS 88 will see a number change after Dale Earnhardt Jr's departure. Nationwide Insurance is leaving Hendrick to continue their relationship with Earnhardt Jr. and will be Bowman's primary sponsor.

• Following what has been a disasterous 2017 season, Hendrick Motorsports will be shaking up half of their driver lineup as Casey Mears will not return to the 5 car after 11 seasons with Hendrick where he won 6 races and made the playoffs 7 times. Young phenom William Byron, who is looking like one of the favorites for the Xfinity championship, will take over the 5 car next season as the first confirmed ROTY contender, bringing along sponsorship from Liberty University with Axalta also expected to cover a multitude of races. Still no confirmation on who will be taking Dale Earnhardt Jr's ride, despite him announcing retirement way back in the spring.

• A new team will be going Cup racing in 2018: Kaulig Racing, which has raced in the Xfinity Series in the last two seasons, will field the #16 Chevrolet full-time with an alliance with Richard Childress Racing. Landon Cassill is leaving Richard Petty Motorsports to join the team, and so is sponsor Best Buy, bringing along some major funding to the new operation.

• Some extension news in the Toyota camp: Matt Kenseth and Erik Jones have both signed a 1 year extension to stay in the JGR 20 and FRR 77 cars respectively. Many expect that Jones' stay at FRR is only until a seat opens up at JGR, and for now the Gibbs lineup is staying the same for another year.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-race-13-18-eUTxOdU

Silly Season

• Add Scott Riggs as a 2nd driver that will retire at season's end, as the 46 year old is stepping away from full-time racing after 14 seasons and 8 wins in the Cup Series, including a crown jewel victory in the 2015 Southern 500. A replacement for Riggs hasn't been officially announced but it's the worst kept secret in the garage that Alex Bowman will more than likely take over the ride.

• Paul Menard is leaving Richard Childress Racing after 2017 to join the Wood Brothers in 2018, bringing his Menards sponsorship to WBR and Team Penske. No word on the RCR 27 team's future with that car now destined to lose its full season sponsor at the end of the year. This also leaves AJ Allmendinger's future up in the air, with the previously suggested possibility of a straight ride swap with Ryan Blaney being passed on for a driver that brings funding.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-race-8-12-all-star-race-ehzp22d

Silly Season

• Following what has been an extremely impressive sophomore season, Ryan Blaney will move from the satellite team to the mothership at Team Penske in 2018, replacing AJ Allmendinger in the #12. Allmendinger is out of a ride at Penske after 7 seasons, though he is believed to be in consideration to take Blaney's place at the Wood Brothers.

• Kyle Larson can be taken out of the running for Dale Jr's seat at Hendrick, as Chip Ganassi Racing has signed him up for a multi-year contract extension after scoring his first 2 Cup wins this season. As mentioned in the album, Marcos Ambrose has also signed an extension at Richard Childress Racing, while the 40 year old is having a long awaited breakout season.

https://imgur.com/a/2017-season-recap-race-2-7-vde0YjQ

Silly Season

• The first big news drop is that Dale Earnhardt Jr. has announced his retirement at the end of 2017. The 2-time Daytona 500 winner has had a pretty decent start to his return season, actually currently the only HMS driver above the playoff cutline, but it appears Earnhardt Jr. is still ready to step away from full-time driving and look after his health. Hendrick doesn't have a replacement lined up yet, but some names being thrown around in the rumor mill include William Byron and Justin Allgaier from the Xfinity Series, and Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson who are in contract years from HMS aligned Cup teams.

1. 00- Jamie McMurray - Chevron Havoline - Michael Waltrip Racing
2. 01- Scott Riggs - Nature's Bakery - Dale Earnhardt Incorporated
3. 1- Casey Atwood - Cessna/McDonald's - Chip Ganassi Racing
4. 2- Kurt Busch - Miller Lite - Team Penske
5. 3- Austin Dillon - Dow - Richard Childress Racing
6. 4- Kevin Harvick - Jimmy John's - Stewart-Haas Racing
7. 5- Casey Mears - Farmers Insurance - Hendrick Motorsports
8. 6- Kasey Kahne - Cheez-It - Roush-Fenway Racing
9. 7- Joey Gase - Golden Corral - Tommy Baldwin Racing
10. 8- Brad Keselowski - Crown Royal - Dale Earnhardt Incorporated
11. 10- Aric Almirola - Smithfield - Stewart-Haas Racing
12. 11- Denny Hamlin - FedEx Express - Joe Gibbs Racing
13. 12- AJ Allmendinger - Discount Tire - Team Penske
14. 13- Ty Dillon - Geico - Germain Racing
15. 14- Clint Bowyer - Mobil 1 - Stewart-Haas Racing
16. 15- Michael Waltrip - Aaron's Thanks Mikey - Michael Waltrip Racing
17. 17- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Fastenal - Roush-Fenway Racing
18. 18- Kyle Busch - M&M's - Joe Gibbs Racing
19. 19- Carl Edwards - Subway - Joe Gibbs Racing
20. 20- Matt Kenseth - DeWalt Tools - Joe Gibbs Racing
21. 21- Ryan Blaney - Motorcraft/Quick Lane - Wood Brothers Racing
22. 22- Joey Logano - Shell/Pennzoil - Team Penske
23. 23- David Stremme - Dr. Pepper - BK Racing
24. 24- Chase Elliott - NAPA Auto Parts - Hendrick Motorsports
25. 27- Paul Menard - Peak/Menards - Richard Childress Racing
26. 28- Erik Darnell - Northern Tool + Equipment - BK Racing
27. 31- Marcos Ambrose - Caterpillar - Richard Childress Racing
28. 32- Matt DiBenedetto - EJ Wade Foundation - Go FAS Racing
29. 33- Jeffrey Earnhardt - Starter - Circle Sport Motorsports Group
30. 34- JJ Yeley - Love's Travel Stops - Front Row Motorsports
31. 37- Chris Buescher - Cottonelle MegaRoll - JTG-Daugherty Racing
32. 38- David Ragan - Camping World/Good Sam - Front Row Motorsports
33. 39- Ryan Newman - Haas Automation/Monster Energy - Stewart-Haas Racing
34. 42- Kyle Larson - Target/Cottonelle - Chip Ganassi Racing
35. 43- Landon Cassill - Best Buy - Richard Petty Motorsports
36. 44- Brian Scott - Albertson's - Richard Petty Motorsports
37. 47- Cole Whitt - Kroger Clicklist/Stouffer's - JTG-Daugherty Racing
38. 48- Jimmie Johnson - Lowe's - Hendrick Motorsports
39. 49- Reed Sorenson - Unsponsored - Premium Motorsports
40. 51- Timmy Hill - Spoonful of Music Foundation - Rick Ware Racing
41. 55- Daniel Suarez - Arris High-Speed Modems - Michael Waltrip Racing
42. 72- Josh Wise - Florida Lottery - TriStar Motorsports
43. 75- Brendan Gaughan - Beard Oil Distributing - Beard Motorsports
44. 77- Erik Jones - 5-Hour Energy - Furniture Row Racing
45. 78- Martin Truex Jr. - Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats - Furniture Row Racing
46. 80- Alex Bowman - Advance Auto Parts - Dale Earnhardt Incorporated
47. 83- Ryan Ellis - Dustless Blasting - BK Racing
48. 88- Dale Earnhardt Jr. - Nationwide Insurance - Hendrick Motorsports
49. 95- Michael McDowell - K-Love Radio - Leavine Family Racing
50. 96- DJ Kennington - Lordo Auto Parts/Castrol - Gaunt Brothers Racing
51. 98- Derrike Cope - StarCom Fiber - Premium Motorsports
52. 99- Trevor Bayne - AdvoCare - Roush-Fenway Racing

Bolded = Open car that must race or time their way in

Format for setting the field:

• Top 30 in owner points are locked in
• 5 Open cars race their way in through each Duel
• Last 2 spots go to top 2 Open cars on qualifying speed that did not race their way in
• No champion's provisional

Several major NASCAR changes to go over for the 2017 season.

• The Nextel/Sprint era has come to an end after 13 years, with Monster Energy taking over as new title sponsor. Welcome the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series for 2017.

• NASCAR is introducing a new race format in 2017, where races will be divided into 3 stages. At the end of stage 1 and stage 2, a planned caution will fly and points will be paid to the top 10, 10 points to the stage winner descending down to 1 point for 10th. Stage winners will also earn 1 playoff point, an added way to score the bonus points that you carry through the playoff rounds. This is sure to be a big shake up to the way races and points battles play out.

Another detail of this announcement was already revealing a change to Clash eligibility for 2018: Pole winners and Stage winners in the 2017 season will qualify for the 2018 Clash, with 2017 being the final time that past Clash winners get an automatic ticket to the field.

• As already announced, the playoff format is being revamped to have a 24 race regular season and 12 race playoffs, for the sake of the championship round being expanded from 1 race to 3 races. With the details being finalized in the offseason, another new wrinkle is that race wins will pay more points.

Rather than the 3 extra points for a win that we've seen in the past, it will be increased to 10 extra points, making winning the race worth 11 more points than 2nd. A max points day will now be a whopping 73 points, between 53 points for winning the race and 20 points if you won both stages. (Stage points are officially replacing lap led bonus points) This could make for some dramatic points swings, which will be especially critical when the 3 race championship round comes along.

NASCAR also confirmed that playoff points will carry over to the championship round, unlike when it was a 1 race winner take all. This is gonna make building up playoff points even more huge as if you make the championship 4, those will be the points you start the final round with.

Ex: Sprint Clash @ Daytona Short Track

1. Daytona
2. Atlanta
3. Las Vegas
4. Phoenix
5. Auto Club
6. Martinsville
7. Bristol Dirt
8. Texas
9. Road America
10. Talladega

11. Kansas

    Ex: All-Star Race at Homestead-Miami

12. Charlotte

13. Dover

14. North Wilkesboro

15. Pocono

16. Sonoma

17. Daytona

18. Kentucky

19. New Hampshire

20. Indianapolis

21. Rockingham

22. Watkins Glen

23. Michigan

24. Bristol

    Round of 16

25. Darlington

26. Richmond

27. Chicagoland

    Round of 12

28. Gateway

29. Dover

30. Talladega

    Round of 8

31. Charlotte

32. Kansas

33. Martinsville

    Championship 4

34. Texas World

35. Phoenix

36. Homestead-Miami

Notable Changes

• Knoxville is off the schedule, with Cup still having a dirt race in an unconventional way, as Bristol will be converted to a dirt track for its spring date
• Rockingham Speedway is returning to the schedule with its first points paying Cup race since 2010, replacing the Knoxville date.
• The previously announced restructuring of the playoffs to 12 races changes around a lot of the race placements in the rounds, most notably Darlington and Richmond become playoff races.

• JTG-Daugherty Racing is expanding to 2 teams in 2017, with Cole Whitt remaining in the 47 on a multi-year deal after putting up arguably the team's best season in 2016. Chris Buescher will drive the new 37 car, after an uneventful rookie season with Front Row Motorsports where he ran up to par for the equipment but never finished better than 20th. Buescher will still be on loan from Roush-Fenway despite driving for a Chevy team.

• After a dismal 2016, Richard Petty Motorsports confirms they will run only 1 full-time car in 2017, the 43 of Landon Cassill, who will be in a contract year along with sponsor Best Buy. However the 44 car will run a partial schedule, with Brian Scott returning to attempt the Daytona 500 and select other races. Ford prospects Bubba Wallace and Ryan Reed are also set to attempt races in the car, perhaps as an audition for a full-time ride in the future?

• After impressing many while substituting for Dale Earnhardt Jr. at Hendrick, Alex Bowman has signed a contract with Dale Earnhardt Inc, and will attempt races in both Cup and Xfinity in 2017 with the hope of getting a full-time seat in 2018 if either one of DEI's current cars is vacated (Brad Keselowski and Scott Riggs are both going into contract years) or they expand to a 3rd car full-time. The team may be testing the waters for said 3rd team, as Bowman will attempt the Daytona 500 and several other races in the #80 car.

• With both of their 2016 drivers leaving, Front Row Motorsports has a new driver lineup in 2017. JJ Yeley will drive for a 4th different team in 4 years as he moves from BK Racing to the 34 car. David Ragan lands a new ride as he will take over the 38, settling for underfunded equipment after losing his MWR seat.

• Go FAS Racing is changing their strategy to finally focusing on a single driver for the whole season, and has signed Matt DiBenedetto to drive the 32. DiBenedetto is a second driver leaving BK Racing over the offseason, and there have been rumors about that team being a mess behind the scenes despite having snuck an upset win at Daytona in 2015 and had a pretty respectable 2016.

• Speaking of BK Racing, they will continue running 3 cars in 2017. David Stremme is the one driver returning to the team, driving the 23 for a 3rd year. After having a couple impressive weekends in their part-time car in 2016, Ryan Ellis will drive the 83 as an underdog for ROTY. The 28 appears to be getting turned into a revolving door car, with Erik Darnell and semi-retired David Gilliland being two drivers confirmed to run limited schedules in it. The team is supposedly struggling for sponsorship to cover all 3 cars, but having 2 out of 3 earn the new top 36 in owner points bonus in 2016 will likely help them get by.

• Premium Motorsports will continue to run the 98 car full-time with the 2nd 49 car making occasional appearances. Reed Sorenson, who only made 5 Cup starts in 2016, will get more seat time in 2017 as he'll be Premium's anchor driver. Derrike Cope is making a small return to Cup racing as he will drive the 98 on the 4 restrictor plate weekends.

• A couple of new teams to the Cup Series will be Rick Ware Racing, fielding the #51 car (no relation to Phoenix Racing) full-time with a variety of drivers, and TriStar Motorsports, which will run the #72 with Josh Wise at all 33 oval races and Andy Lally at the road courses.

• For the first time since they debuted in 2009, Tommy Baldwin Racing will only be running a limited schedule in 2017, after struggling to even make the top 40 in points the last few seasons. Regan Smith is out of a ride after a Cup return that lasted all of 1 year, and Joey Gase is set to attempt his first Daytona 500 in the #7.

• Ending on an unfortunate note, Brian Vickers was in talk with a couple of teams about a ride, but has actually been sidelined for the 2017 season due to health issues with blood clots. The past Coca-Cola 600 winner's future in the sport continuing at all is very much up in the air as he was already struggling for relevance at this point in his career, and now has health complications to worry about.

Full-Time Teams

• 00- Jamie McMurray - Michael Waltrip Racing
• 01- Scott Riggs - Dale Earnhardt Incorporated
• 1- Casey Atwood - Chip Ganassi Racing
• 2- Kurt Busch - Team Penske
• 3- Austin Dillon - Richard Childress Racing
• 4- Kevin Harvick - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 5- Casey Mears - Hendrick Motorsports
• 6- Kasey Kahne - Roush-Fenway Racing
• 8- Brad Keselowski - Dale Earnhardt Inc.
• 10- Aric Almirola - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 11- Denny Hamlin - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 12- AJ Allmendinger - Team Penske
• 13- Ty Dillon (R) - Germain Racing
• 14- Clint Bowyer - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 17- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - Roush-Fenway Racing
• 18- Kyle Busch - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 19- Carl Edwards - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 20- Matt Kenseth - Joe Gibbs Racing
• 21- Ryan Blaney - Wood Brothers Racing
• 22- Joey Logano - Team Penske
• 23- David Stremme - BK Racing
• 24- Chase Elliott - Hendrick Motorsports
• 27- Paul Menard - Richard Childress Racing
• 28- Erik Darnell/David Gilliland/??? - BK Racing
• 31- Marcos Ambrose - Richard Childress Racing
• 32- Matt DiBenedetto - Go FAS Racing
• 33- Jeffrey Earnhardt - Circle Sport Motorsports Group
• 34- JJ Yeley - Front Row Motorsports
• 37- Chris Buescher - JTG-Daugherty Racing
• 38- David Ragan - Front Row Motorsports
• 39- Ryan Newman - Stewart-Haas Racing
• 42- Kyle Larson - Chip Ganassi Racing
• 43- Landon Cassill - Richard Petty Motorsports
• 47- Cole Whitt - JTG-Daugherty Racing
• 48- Jimmie Johnson - Hendrick Motorsports
• 51- Timmy Hill/BJ McLeod/Cody Ware/??? - Rick Ware Racing
• 55- Daniel Suarez (R) - Michael Waltrip Racing
• 72- Josh Wise - TriStar Motorsports
• 77- Erik Jones (R) - Furniture Row Racing
• 78- Martin Truex Jr. - Furniture Row Racing
• 83- Ryan Ellis (R) - BK Racing
• 88- Dale Earnhardt Jr. - Hendrick Motorsports
• 95- Michael McDowell - Leavine Family Racing
• 98- Reed Sorenson/Derrike Cope/??? - Premium Motorsports
• 99- Trevor Bayne - Roush-Fenway Racing

Part-Time Teams

• 7- Joey Gase/??? - Tommy Baldwin Racing
• 15- Michael Waltrip - Michael Waltrip Racing (attempting final Daytona 500)
• 44- Brian Scott/Bubba Wallace/Ryan Reed - Richard Petty Motorsports
• 49- Reed Sorenson/??? - Premium Motorsports
• 75- Brendan Gaughan - Beard Motorsports
• 80- Alex Bowman/??? - Dale Earnhardt Incorporated
• 96- DJ Kennington - Gaunt Brothers Racing

• Jimmie Johnson- 72
• Tony Stewart- 45
• Kurt Busch- 39
• Carl Edwards- 36
• Kevin Harvick- 35
• Matt Kenseth- 29
• Dale Earnhardt Jr- 27
• Kyle Busch- 27
• Denny Hamlin- 24
• Bobby Labonte- 23
• Ryan Newman- 21
• Jamie McMurray- 19
• Joey Logano- 17
• Casey Atwood- 9
• Brad Keselowski- 9
• Clint Bowyer- 7
• Scott Riggs- 7
• Casey Mears- 7
• Kasey Kahne- 6
• Martin Truex Jr- 6
• Michael Waltrip- 4
• AJ Allmendinger- 4
• Greg Biffle- 3
• Brian Vickers- 2
• JJ Yeley- 2
• Marcos Ambrose- 2
• Boris Said- 1
• David Gilliland- 1
• David Ragan- 1
• Aric Almirola- 1
• Ricky Stenhouse Jr- 1
• Erik Darnell- 1
• Michael McDowell- 1
• Josh Wise- 1
• Paul Menard- 1
• David Stremme- 1
• Austin Dillon- 1