“He can drive 'em to the top level”: Noah Gragson’s crew chief exudes optimism ahead of FRM reunion
Noah Gragson's new crew chief, Drew Blickensderfer, shed an optimistic light on his driver for the upcoming season with Front Row Motorsports. He talked about it in an interview with Davey Segal on an episode of Victory Lane.
In 2025, Noah Gragson will drive the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Front Row Motorsports (FRM) in the NASCAR Cup Series. His crew chief will be Drew Blickensderfer, a veteran with over 16 years of experience in NASCAR. He previously worked with Gragson during his 2024 season at Stewart-Haas Racing with their partnership achieving strong results. This move to FRM reunites Gragson with Blickensderfer and other former SHR team members, forming a well-prepared and cohesive group as they aim to build on FRM’s recent growth. The new crew chief brings prior success with FRM, having guided Michael McDowell to a Daytona 500 victory in 2021.
In an interview with Davey Segal on Victory Lane, the Illinois native discussed his belief in the young 26-year-old driver.
"I think some people might realize what your upside is, but I don't think most have even touched what Noah Gragson can do in a race car. When he gets stability, when he gets confidence in what he can do, he's one heck of a race car driver. But most importantly, I like Noah as a person. Noah cares about everybody around him. I want Noah to be happy. I want him to be confident. I want him to have fun coming to work," he said.
He further added:
"But I see an upside in a race car driver that I haven't seen in a long time. I've seen kids that go fast and wreck. Noah Gragson, the wild, crazy guy that everybody sees on social media or with a camera in front of his face, he gets in that race car and he's super serious. And he can drive 'em to the top level of the sport as good as about anybody. And I want to be a part of that when we can harness it and get it every single week."
Noah Gragson won the 2015 NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Rookie of the Year and secured 5 wins in that series. He joined Kyle Busch Motorsports for the Truck Series in 2017 where he earned two wins. He then moved up to the Xfinity Series where he became a notable contender winning 13 races and was named the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series Most Popular Driver.
In 2023, Gragson made his debut in the NASCAR Cup Series with Legacy Motor Club where he drove the #42. He joined Stewart Haas Racing for the 2024 season but eventually left as the outfit ceased all operations after the campaign.
“I'm super happy with our team, it's very strong”: Noah Gragson’s crew chief on reuniting with his team at FRM
Drew Blickensderfer expressed enthusiasm about rejoining Front Row Motorsports alongside Noah Gragson for the 2025 NASCAR season. In an interview with Sirius XM NASCAR Radio, Blickensderfer reflected on his previous departure from the team, citing frustrations with performance due to limited resources. He emphasized that improvements have been made, allowing him to build a strong team that will support Gragson in showcasing his talent.
"But tryna get guys to come with me or try to recruit new guys so all of that was really successful, I am super happy with my team. It's very strong. So you know, everybody believes everything was gonna be okay. So yeah, it helps. I can say that my blood pressure will be slightly less at Daytona than it probably would have been. I am just trying to build the fastest cars and let Noah prove to everybody how good he is," Blickensderfer said [0:40 onwards].
Blickensderfer humorously noted that his stress levels would be lower during the Daytona 500, indicating a positive outlook for the upcoming season.