The 2026 NASCAR season is sort of right here, with a whole lot of pleasure for the brand new playoff format and the rise in horsepower that ought to result in higher racing. Whereas the stakes are loads excessive for the very best NASCAR drivers, there are a number of behind the wheel within the Cup Collection who’re underneath strain for an additional purpose.
Let’s dive into the NASCAR sizzling seat for 2026.
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Alex Bowman
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It’s by no means a terrific spot to be in if you find yourself acknowledged because the fourth-best driver for the highest staff in NASCAR. That’s the spot Alex Bowman has discovered himself in for a number of years now. To make issues worse for him, it’s a contract yr and there are many nice alternative choices accessible. The brand new playoff format makes the trail to clinching a spot much more troublesome, because the tools and crew that the No. 48 staff and Hendrick supply place nearly any above-average driver behind the wheel to earn one of many 16 playoff spots. If Bowman goes a second consecutive season and not using a win, giving him only one within the final three seasons, it can in all probability be time for a change to be made behind the wheel.
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Riley Herbst
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Everybody in NASCAR acknowledges the position Riley Herbst performs for 23XI Racing. He brings deep pockets, which have been essential final season when the staff was unchartered within the second half of the yr and locked right into a multi-million-dollar lawsuit towards the game. That saga is among the the reason why Herbst landed a multi-year deal to drive the No. 35 regardless of having restricted success within the Xfinity Collection. Coming off a season the place he recorded solely eight top-20 finishes and ranked bottom-three in common ending place, Herbst is successfully combating for his profession within the Cup Collection getting into the 2026 marketing campaign.
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Daniel Suarez
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It’s now or by no means for Daniel Suarez. After Trackhouse Racing introduced throughout the 2025 season that it was transferring on from him, he needed to accept a one-year cope with Spire Motorsports. Nobody would ever mistake Suarez for being among the best drivers within the Cup Collection, however he at the least carried out effectively in 2024 (209 laps led, 9 prime 10s and one win). After what occurred in 2025, nevertheless, pushing him to only one Cup win within the final three seasons, he had minimal choices on the open market. If Suarez can not take advantage of his final likelihood with Spire, he’s destined to have his solely full-time gives coming from the Xfinity Collection subsequent offseason.
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Noah Gragson
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Even with the brand new constitution settlement, prices for the mid-tier NASCAR Cup Collection groups are increased than ever earlier than, and income margins can wind up being within the crimson. For Entrance Row Motorsports, this solely offers the staff a restricted quantity of persistence. Noah Gragson joined FRM for the 2025 marketing campaign, extending his winless streak to 111 races, and he has solely 11 prime 10s in his profession. He additionally positioned within the prime 15 in simply six races final season. If he can not have way more success in his second season behind the wheel of the No. 4 automobile, it is going to be time for FRM to maneuver on as a result of there might be no scarcity of higher choices or drivers with increased upside.
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Todd Gilliland
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Todd Gilliland continues to be one of many youngest full-time NASCAR Cup Collection drivers, turning 26 years outdated in Might. With that stated, the choice a number of years in the past to have him skip the Xfinity Collection has not labored out. Throughout 144 profession races on the Cup stage, he has by no means completed increased than twenty second in factors, and his common ending place has been 20.8 or worse in every of the final 4 years. If he finishes one other season with fewer than 50 laps led and 5 or fewer top-10s, Entrance Row Motorsports ought to transfer on and Gilliland ought to spend time within the Xfinity Collection.
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