2026 Silly Season

Spire is looking pretty good right now, strong runs from McDowell and Hocevar. Sure, Haley might be lagging by comparison, but that's still above several other full-timers in Cup.
 
kckolbe said:
Spire is looking pretty good right now, strong runs from McDowell and Hocevar. Sure, Haley might be lagging by comparison, but that's still above several other full-timers in Cup.
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McDowell picked a fine time to jump. His old team is almost charter less and in hot water and he is on pretty steady ground with Spire.
 
StandOnIt said:
McDowell picked a fine time to jump. His old team is almost charter less and in hot water and he is on pretty steady ground with Spire.
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Well, I'm not knocking FRM. McDowell said that he wanted long term stability, and FRM said they couldn't offer that, which is looking VERY true. They were planning a pretty big gamble, after all. And, to be fair, I really like FRM's drivers. With so many aging and borderline Cup drivers filling seats in 2026, FRM could be looking VERY good next year if they can survive all of this.

And legally, I really think they have more than a solid case. So yeah, good on McDowell, good on Spire, but no shade on FRM either, because there is real potential there. So much potential that I think they picked a bad time to pick a fight with NASCAR, but I get it.
 
kckolbe said:
Well, I'm not knocking FRM. McDowell said that he wanted long term stability, and FRM said they couldn't offer that, which is looking VERY true. They were planning a pretty big gamble, after all. And, to be fair, I really like FRM's drivers. With so many aging and borderline Cup drivers filling seats in 2026, FRM could be looking VERY good next year if they can survive all of this.

And legally, I really think they have more than a solid case. So yeah, good on McDowell, good on Spire, but no shade on FRM either, because there is real potential there. So much potential that I think they picked a bad time to pick a fight with NASCAR, but I get it.
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3 drivers soon to be without charters and their fates rest on the court system at present. I can't see FRM looking good with the possibility of being charter less for next year. If I was a driver for them I would be looking around, seeing what is available.
 
StandOnIt said:
3 drivers soon to be without charters and their fates rest on the court system at present. I can't see FRM looking good with the possibility of being charter less for next year. If I was a driver for them I would be looking around, seeing what is available.
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The 45 could be available in that situation. ;)
 
hmmm298 said:
The 45 could be available in that situation. ;)
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....and I think the risk of losing the 45 is very real. I think Tyler is clear that he would be fine in the short term, but if they end up losing this deal, what does his long term future look like? Not as good as it should for a driver of his caliber. He has a growing family. The future matters to him. If MJ or Denny have been negligent in keeping Tyler in the loop on everything, this might get tricky.
 
Revman said:
....and I think the risk of losing the 45 is very real. I think Tyler is clear that he would be fine in the short term, but if they end up losing this deal, what does his long term future look like? Not as good as it should for a driver of his caliber. He has a growing family. The future matters to him. If MJ or Denny have been negligent in keeping Tyler in the loop on everything, this might get tricky.
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I agree, and I think that's the biggest reason Hamlin isn't under contract next season. If Reddick opts out, Gibbs could snatch him up and put him in the 11, leaving Hamlin to fill the 45.
 
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