Noah Gragson reunites with former crew chief Drew Blickensderfer for Front Row Motorsports campaign
Noah Gragson will reunite with his former crew chief Drew Blickensderfer for his Front Row Motorsports Cup Series campaign. The former Stewart-Haas Racing driver inked a multiyear deal with Bob Jenkins-owned outfit this past mid-season and will drive alongside his teammate Todd Gilliland.
FRM entered the NASCAR Cup Series on a full-time schedule in 2005 and wrapped the 2024 season with two cars -the #34 Ford piloted by Michael McDowell and the #38 Ford by Gilliland. On May 29, the organization announced its expansion plans to a three-car Cup team.
A day before FRM made its expansion public, SHR announced its upcoming shutdown. The timing was coincidentally perfect for the former team to secure one driver from a pool of four, and they opted for Noah Gragson.
However, it's been over five months since Gragson's deal was announced in July and FRM was due to unveil the NextGen car number and the crew details of their new driver. While the number is a mystery, the crew chief's name is revealed -Drew Blickensderfer.
“Bob is invested in growing the team We have Drew and a lot of our 10 guys going over there so we should hit the ground running. This is not like a new team, where we all have to get used to each other. We already have chemistry and we just have to go out there and perform," Gragson said via Jayski.
Gragson and Blickensderfer previously worked together at SHR when the latter called the shots for the former's #10 Ford. They have earned a solitary top-5 and seven top-10s from 36 races and would continue their year-long partnership albeit for Bob Jenkins.
"I would like to stay with Drew Blickensderfer": When Noah Gragson expressed his desire to bring SHR personnel to FRM
Shortly after securing his NASCAR future, Noah Gragson expressed that SHR's employees, who would be without a job after the closure, need opportunities. Thus, Gragson said he wanted to stay with Blickensderfer and his #10 team crew, possible only if FRM signs them.
"I would like to stay with Drew Blickensderfer and the group of 10 guys that we have over at Stewart-Haas. Obviously, with them closing doors at the end of the year, all those guys need opportunities too," Gragson said via SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (1:05).
Noah Gragson will enjoy one thing at Front Row Motorsports that he didn't get to throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career -stability.
The Nevada native began Premier level racing for Beard Motorsports in 2021. After driving part-time entries for three teams in two years, Gragson got a full-time ride with Legacy Motor Club for the 2023 season. However, his rookie season ended abruptly after a social media mistake resulted in an indefinite suspension by NASCAR.
Nonetheless, when the officials lifted the ban, SHR signed the driver for the 2024 campaign. It's worth mentioning that Noah Gragson could've stayed at the Tony Stewart-led organization if shutting down wasn't on the cards.