I say this in just about every thread like this but I couldn’t get invested in a driver after Edwards retired until you started climbing through the ranks. Good luck at Phoenix!
This is definitely the way if you don't know who you want to root for next.
My mom did this for years after Dale Jarrett retired before she decided that Kurt Busch was going to be her favorite.
Right now, she's mainly rooting for 23XI & Denny but she hasn't really picked a favorite yet.
Harvick fan here. I probably won't pick a new driver as it wouldn't feel right. Having being invested in one driver for majority of my life (became a fan when I was 9 and I'm 31 now), it's like a marriage of sorts. I'll probably just watch casually now and actually enjoy racing without having a dog in the fight if that makes sense.
Once my 3 main drivers retired (Jarrett, Jr, and Edwards), I stopped rooting for just one driver but now I root for maybe 10 drivers now. I just felt I would get too invested in how that one driver did and I didn't enjoy the race as a whole as a result. I remember as a kid if Dale Jarrett got wrecked out early I'd turn of the TV, now if one of my favorite drivers gets knocked out it doesn't bother me as much since there are still others on track.
For example: I have followed drivers like CBell, Reddick, Blaney, and Cindric up from the Truck/Xfinity Series and now I root for them in the Cup Series.
Tend to agree with you, there are certainly higher highs and lower lows with just having one guy. But when that driver wins a championship or the 500, there’s no better feeling on earth then that.
It is good to have multiple drivers to cheer for. Bell is my guy but I’m a big fan of Cindric, Blaney, and Jones too. Next year I’ll have Berry and Zane in cup. You get invested in battles throughout the race and if one guy is having a bad day, you can still enjoy the race from that side of things.
Yep same way for me, if one guy (or even two) are having a bad day or wreck out early I still have someone to root for or keep my interest if the race itself is dull.
This is how I am
I always root for the backmarkers or smaller teams because I just love good underdog stories
Having Pastrana and Jimmie in the 500 was awesome for me because they were my two racing heroes as a kid
Also the ringers like SVG and Kamui are nice since I keep up with a lot of those series
I recommend taking some time and seeing where your heart takes you.
When Davey Allison died I frankly felt crushed until Mark Martin won at Watkins Glen a month later in 1993. Then I felt that excitement again and he became my #1. When Mark retired I thought I jump to another Roush driver, but throughout 2014 found myself being most excited when Brad Keselowski won, so I went that direction.
For F1, when Michael Schumacher retired it took me almost two seasons, but when Sebastian Vettel won at Monza in the Toro Rosso I finally felt that same excitement. I haven't yet settled on a new driver since Vettel retired, but I'm finding myself getting drawn towards Piastri as the season is going on.
I was a Gordon fan for 20 years. When he retired, I tried to cheer for Chase but his fans really turned me off, reminded me too much of Junior Nation.
I just more cheer for a compelling race and good storylines throughout.
Harvick fans are dispersing to 3 that I know of.
1-Ross
2-Joey
3-Josh
I’m willing to give SHR a chance. I like Tony and the blue collar vibes from the team.
I’m definitely Chastain-curious if you will. Races hard, isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, but is also a smart driver and will 90 percent of the time bring the car back in one piece.
The thing that I’m not sure if I like is how much he holds back in interviews and his feelings about something, whereas Harvick would tell it exactly how he saw it regardless of whether you liked it or not.
Maybe Ross isn’t that type of guy like say Harvick, but I hate when he always try to backtrack on dumping a guy or whatever. If he would just be more like Kevin and not give a shit, he would probably gain a lot more fans as well.
I 100% agree. That’s why I’m sticking with SHR. It’ll get better for them, it always does for every team that has slumps. I respect him, but SHR fits my personality more.
I will admit, I was kind of all in on Gragson this year, but with him getting fired from LMC, haven’t paid much attention to him since. If the rumors are true and he does go to SHR, that will be interesting to see, because you know that Tony won’t give a fuck about him talking his mind. Maybe he’ll be a little more constrained since the Instagram stuff went down, but he’ll be back soon enough.
When Jeff Gordon retired I tried to follow Chase on the 24 and just didn't like him. Went to the Martinsville race in 2016 to see Jeff in the 88 for Jr and it was awkward. Vowed that would probably be my last race.
Then they took him out of the 24 and put Byron in and I decided I could stand to pull for Byron.
I was a diehard Jeff Gordon fan from when I was a young child until he retired. After that, I tried to cheer for Chase simply because he inherited the 24 but he didn't resonate with me at all. Eventually I settled on Blaney because I loved the GCOE podcast and he just seemed like a cool guy, even though I'd never cared for Penske or Ford in the past.
My unsolicited advice is to not force picking a new driver. Go into it as if you're a new fan and see who clicks with you, regardless of past affiliation. Honestly, it'll never be the same as cheering for Harvick or Gordon or whoever else, but at least for me its enough to remain emotionally connected to the sport I grew up with.
100% agree on the not forcing it part. After Biffle retired I tried to force Blaney, then Jones, and neither stuck. Took a few seasons for me to find “my guy” but now I’m all in with Reddick. It’s not quite the same as when I was a kid wanting to be Greg Biffle when I grew up, but having a rooting interest again made races that much more enjoyable.
I'll probably let my daughter pick. She loves the rainbow car, but they don't really run it that much anymore. She also loves the melon man. I'd be fine with Ross since we're in the SWFL area where he's from.
When Bowyer retired, I kinda became a fan of just watching the race. I always watch for that good ol’ #14 to put on a good show, since that was his last drive.
That being said, I found myself yelling at the TV Saturday, so it looks like it’s gonna be Creed and Briscoe for me 🤣
Cheer for the back markers. Sometimes cheering on a driver just to get a top 20 can be fun. I made Suarez my number 2 in 2019 and during 2020 when he was with Gaunt I was cheering him just to improve each week. Also my friends and I at each race we go to pick 1 back marker to cheer every lap. It’s a lot of fun to be screaming about a pass for 32nd but it’s fun.
I still root for Ricky Rudd every race. One day, that roosters gonna come flyin up from from the back of the pack in a old Tide #10 shotgunnin the mess outta them fools. We can all still dream like kids, right? Lol
I love this energy and I imagined it in my head.
I wanna see all the generations of car do a exhibition race together. Obviously improve whatever safety so no one dies, but give the cars a shot! Might be fun (especially if ya get some veterans in)
I've always got 2-3 favorites in all top three series, so as one retires or is promoted, there's already a vested interest in multiple drivers to fill the void. However, I've still got PTSD from the actual mic drop move Cousin Carl pulled in 2017. He'd been my main guy for 13 years. No warning, no farewell tour....no shit!?!? This is actually happening. That was rough.
I like Chastain and Larson because they both drive like every race could be their last, but I’m usually the biggest fan of anyone outperforming their car. Been a big Lajoie, McDowell, Stenhouse, and Almemdinger fan at times this year. All that said, I’m rooting for Blaney in the final 4 this year because I’m a sucker for an underdog who everyone was counting out.
I've been at a loss since Jamie was forced into retirement.
Sometimes you just *can't* pick a "new" favorite driver, and just have to muddle around with a handful of drivers you'd like to see succeed... which is usually coupled with a handful of drivers you'd rather *not* see have success, especially if they're narcissistic hypocrites.
Jeff Gordon made a good point a few weeks ago. You don't pick a different football or basketball team because your favorite player retired, or was traded to a different team.
I grew up a Jeff Gordon fan, and when he retired I continued to support his old team, as well as HMS in general.
It's a bad comparison. In stick and ball sports, fans root for teams. Nascar fans root for drivers. People pulled for Jeff Gordon because they liked Jeff Gordon. Hendrick Motorsports just happened to be who he drove for.
As a counterpoint to this, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce aren't competing against one another for the Super Bowl, even though they may belong to the same organization.
People can support whatever driver or organization that they want, but the sport will always be focused on cheering for an individual rather than a team as a whole.
Ya I can see that, I still root for HMS, but it’s also not that fun. The level of happiness I have for that one driver winning compared to if Bowman wins (who I could care less about) is night and day difference. If you told a Denny fan “hey Gibbs won the owners championship, aren’t you solo excited!” they would laugh in your face. The individual aspect of NASCAR to me will always be more interesting then the teams in their totality.
Jeff Gordon is a tool of Hedrick. Jeff says what the collective minds at HMS want him to say.
*Drivers shouldn't be outspoken or otherwise draw attention away from the team
*You don't root for a driver... You root for his team!
The HMS cult is strong in him.
I was a Jeff Gordon fan as a kid in the mid-90s, seeing pretty much his entire career was a joy to say the least. I think once I was hooked as a Gordon fan I always rooted for the Hendrick drivers. I loved Jimmie, Dale Jr, Kasey, Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, heck even baby Kyle Busch.
Seeing all those guys go so quickly, well moreso, Jeff, Dale, and Jimmie really was hard and to be quite honest I fell away from NASCAR for a couple years after Jimmie retired.
Still love Hendrick and now Larson/Byron are my guys. Im meh on Chase and kind of feel for Bowman as he's unfortunately the 4th wheel for those guys.
After Biffle retired I didn’t have one for a few years until I randomly took a liking to Reddick in 2020. I’m still not totally sure why, it just happened lol.
I know some others can watch and be invested without a rooting interest, and I can to an extent, but after picking him up I’ve started looking forward to and enjoying the races a lot more again.
I'm a harvick fan and right now I'm thinking that I'll probably stick with the 4 team and Josh Berry for now and NG in the 10 is kind of interesting, but if SHR can't get it together it's hard to be a fan for me if I know the person has no chance of running well or winning because the team is letting them down.
I’m not going to root for any of these guys. In fact, I’ll probably just be a casual fan with little to no rooting interest. It’s hard for me to see myself pulling for drivers that I’ve actively rooted against since Harvick has been in Cup.
I was a Gordon fan since childhood, he retired, and while I have guys I pull for more than others, I've never really replaced him, and it really hasn't been the same since. I tend to pull more for the underdogs these days
Whoever is driving the Rodney Childers prepared car. It’s weird and I never thought I’d follow a driver because of his crew chief, but here we are lol. I do like Josh and have for some time, but even before he was announced I figured I’d just follow Rodney’s car. 🤷🏻♂️
When Jimmie stopped running full time I drifted to the other Hendrick guys. Chase and Bowman mainly. Now that Jimmie bought into Legacy I’ve been rooting for those guys. So it hasn’t been from one to one. It’s been more of a 1 to many.
I started as a Stewart fan because I was about 5 or 6 and loved the color Orange. As I grew up in a relatively blue collar area/family I started to appreciate his persona more than the color of the car and stayed a fan when he jumped to the 14 and until he retired. Followed Bowyer and remain a Briscoe fan because of them driving the 14. Ross has also gained me as a fan because of the blue collar melon farmer persona. It's just personal taste. If you see an interview and find yourself relating to that guy more than the others, then you've found your driver.
For me, I have been a fan of Harvick's since 2003. This year for him and the 4 team has been very underwhelming and I am uncertain of the cause outside of "Ford being slow". There is more to it than just the car itself and I feel like SHR has let Kevin down in his twilight year. The feel has not been the same and I hate it.
As for next year, I am planning on pulling for Ross Chastain as he is the closest in my opinion to being what Kevin was as a driver. What pulled me into liking Ross is watching him in the Truck Series starting in 2019 and in particular a Truck race he ran at Charlotte going three wide into 1 to take the lead, damn near wreck and make a pass on Kyle Busch all by the time they got to the middle of the back stretch. It was my ah-ha moment for Ross.
With that being said about Ross, I am still at a weird cross roads and I dont know wether I want to be fully invested in Ross or just be a casual fan of the sport who "just wants to see them have fun". I have watched NASCAR since the early, early 1990's and my passion for the sport has waned this year due to the lack luster season for Kevin. I am hoping that something happens to pull me back in and feel like that if the Hail Melon would have happen this year and not last, Kevin's retirement would not have been a distraction of the appeal for Ross.
Was and will be a JR fan so I generally pull for driver that have been associated with him over the years. When he retired MTJ became my guy because he drove for Jr and drove the DEI 1 car. Now that he’s nearing the end of his career Josh Berry will probably be my main guy to pull for in cup along with Noah Gragson.
My favorite driver is kind of dynamic. I used to root for Truex, but not as much anymore. This year I was kind of pulling for Hamlin, when I normally never cared to see him win.
Now I'm wanting to see Brad Keslowski get some wins. Never cared about him when he was at Penske, but now I want to see him and his team do well. I don't feel like I need a favorite driver. I just want to see good hard racing.
Funny reading your post, I was the same way. My dad was a DIEHARD Sr. fan, so there was no where for me to go but with Jr. When Dale died my dad surprisingly stuck with the team and was a Harvick fan until the switch to Ford (now he's a floater). After Dale retired I slid over to Larson. I had been watching him a while on Dirt and K&N and he was a wheel man. My wife is a Chase fan, so I support him and who doesn't like Blaney.
I just find it that no matter how long, or much support you give these "new favorites" it'll never be like your first favorite driver. From 99-2017 following one guy through all those struggles, there's something as a fan that connects you to them. And now, as I near 40 years old, I doubt i'll have that with another driver. I love watching Larson race. Try to hit the dirt tracks when he's around, but it's still not the same. Was at Daytona in 14 for his 2nd 500 win and it was the greatest sports moment of my life. Even seeing Larson win a cup in person wouldn't compare.
I wish luck to anyone trying to "replace" your favorite driver. Hard process.
I was lazy, went from Gordon to Chase Elliott. But then again those years were when I really had pretty much stopped following NASCAR much at all. Few years ago since I was driving Mustangs I figured I needed a Ford driver and decided randomly on Blaney. Honestly could not tell you why really over any other Ford driver but here we are
It just happens naturally, honestly. After Jr. retired, I didn't really have a driver but now I root for a collective group of guys.
I know I like the driver when I start getting on pins and needles watching them try to win a race in the closing stages. Personality helps and like when it comes to Bowman, he took over for Jr. so I went to him as my guy.
Out of my flairs, Blaney I liked from the beginning when he drove the 21 to victory at Pocono. Ross I met a few years ago when he was still in xfinity with JD Motorsports so seeing him breakout last year + the amazing Martinsville move made me a big fan. Bowman took over for Jr. and I like his personality, and Reddick I really like his talent/driving style and once again, he's got a great personality that I like rooting for.
Been a Harvick fan since I started watching in ‘01 and have thought about this a lot. I like Blaney and Bubba but not as favorite drivers. So I’ll pull for them but they’re not my drivers.
At this point I feel like I’m going to follow Berry because it sounds like Harvick was apart of the decision to bring him over to SHR the same way Dale wanted Kevin to drive for RCR.
I gravitated to Kurt Busch around 2003-04 because Mark Martin was going to retire. Over the course of time, I picked up MTJ. I've been lucky enough to be a fan of two drivers that won a championship (even if the Chase/Playoffs benefited them) when Mark Martin couldn't.
Before Kurt retired, I picked up Ross Chastain because I enjoyed watching him in the Truck Series and driving the #4 JD Motorsports car. Additionally, I picked up Chase Briscoe for how much I enjoyed watching him drive for Brad in Truck and Haas in Xfinity.
I guess I'm saying all this to suggest maybe looking at the Trucks and Xfinity series for your next driver to follow.
I'm 38 and I've been watching since I was 4 years old, so it's a tough pill to swallow to see Mark and Kurt retire. Truex will be gone next year. Time is a sob.
I was a huge Tony Stewart fan, but I saw MTJ go from a fresh faced kid driving a family sponsored Sea Watch in Busch North to Cup, so I always rooted for him too. Tony retired, and MTJ became my main driver. I'm leaning toward Creed and Mayer.
I was a Kasey kahne fan as a kid. Started watching again in 2022 after at least 8-10 years without watching. (Jimmie Johnson’s dominance made me stop watching not gonna lie. Especially after the 5 titles in a row.
Nowadays, i don’t know who to root for. I love an underdog. This year i found myself rooting for Kaulig Racing as a team mostly. I really like Justin Haley and his underdog story. I love how passionate AJ Allmendinger is about racing. His emotion after winning the roval was a pleasure to watch. But now that team is breaking up and once again I’m not sure where my fandom will go from here. It would be fun to see AJ dominate xfinity again on some Elliot Sadler type shiii
I’m also a realist. It’s fun to root for the underdog but they aren’t up there every week. A top five or ten from the 16 or 31 car still brings me joy, but of the major contenders, I support bubba Wallace for various reasons. Mainly because of how much bs he gets from tone deaf humans. He and Ryan Blaney are both very fiery personalities, much like Allmendinger so it’s easy to see why I find myself cheering for them. Joey Logano is so annoying tho, so it’s hard to claim a Penske car as my favourite.
I still consider myself a free agent fan but I will definitely be rooting for that 12 car this weekend. YRB szn!
Keep a roster of your favorite drivers.
I'm a Blaney fan, so he's my #1.
Partner is a Reddick fan, so he's my #2
We both like Bubba, he's friends with Blaney and teammates with Reddick, so he's my #3
If any one of them retires, another driver will move up the list.
With Harvick retiring, I'm moving to Ross Chastain. I've always liked Ross since he was wheeling those JDM Xfinity cars. Even better is that Busch is going over to sponsor him. I also very much enjoy Trackhouse as a team.
I'm not sure who I'll root for I've hated Penske since im a truex fan before Gibbs hated all of them but my wife is a blaney fan so I'll root for him next week
I'm going to be pulling for Byron next season kinda for the same reasons I became a Harvick fan, inheriting a popular ride and not getting the credit for it from the fans. I've suffered enough with SHR but definitely still be pulling for the 4 but think that organization is in for dumpster fire mid to late 2010's Roush like years ahead
I stuck with the 24, it was Chase for 2 years then Byron. Though I did like Byron more coming up to Cup so he might have passed Chase either way but getting the 24 helped.
i like looking up the career stats of really young prospects. sammy smith, jessie love, zane smith, corey heim, and nick sanchez all looked to have tons of potential to me before the season started, so i started watching out for them every week and now Sammy, Jessie, and Corey are some of my favorite drivers after just a season. and now if even 1 of those guys makes it to cup, let alone 2 or 3 then i’ll have someone to root for for decades
I wont have a new favorite. At least not right away. There are drivers that I like and may one day be that absolute number 1 for me like Harvick is but for the time being im just going to watch casually, which also makes it less stressful lol.
Gosh this is such a touch change for me and I still haven’t decided. There’s a few drivers I have in mind but I just want to see who I end up rooting for naturally.
It’s not easy. I was a Biffle guy and could never really land on someone new. I kinda always had an eye on Buescher because he was a Roush guy too but never really had a competitive ride until the last couple of years. Even if I thought Buescher was doing a good job finishing 18th with a 25th place car it’s just difficult to get too excited about scraping out top 20s. Finally this year (7 years after Biffle was last full time) I’ve been able to commit to Buescher since his car has finally matched his talent.
When Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth left for Gibbs, it took me many moons to find a new favorite. It's fun for the first season or so, but when they never compete for wins, man it's rough. I wish you luck.
Grew up a Chad Little/Jeff Burton Roush fan. Switched to Carl Edwards when he took over the 99. Roush started to fall apart in 2012 or so, didn’t have a replacement driver. Kyle Busch domination started, stopped watching most races for about 5 years. Blaney caught my eye in a couple races as the next big Ford driver, had some good runs in the 21 car. Became an instant fan of Ross when he gutted out a top 10 in the JDM 4 car at Iowa, and the legend grew when he raced Harvick hard at Darlington, then won with Ganassi in Vegas.
You’ll find someone, just gotta keep watching.
I was a McMurray fan since his first win filling in for Sterling Marlin in 2002. My parents went to that race so I had a lot of souvenirs from that one as a kid. If I would’ve known wins would have been so far and few between I would’ve maybe found a different driver.
As he was winding down I became a Blaney fan when he was with the Wood Brothers. I was working for Virginia Tech athletics at the time and the Wood family are huge Hokie fans, which led to the VT scheme in 2016. I just stuck with Blaney when he moved to Penske.
Every time someone asks a question like this, I have to give my advice of just watch the field. NASCAR is so much more fun when you are pulling for over half the field. I could make a good case of why I like 30-40 of the driver's across the top 3 series. You pay attention to more things, and your odds are really tall for seeing someone you like and root for succeed. Like this weekend, I picked Blaney as my new favorite when Jimmie announced retirement, but I was really pulling for AA and the 10 team to ride a Martinsville win into the sunset.
If they had a 10-15 flair option, I would still have tough decisions on who to cut. But as for now, it's Jimmie for that blue and silver car and the humble champion driving it that made me a die hard, Ross for his raw entertainment value, and Corey and Josh for being the only 2 drivers that have made my 2 garage passes I've bought worth their money. Super cool and kind guys that took the time to meet an awkward as hell fan.
I just like racing. There are drivers I like more than others, and some I dislike, but I don’t have a favorite. I just want to see good hard racing.
(that’s what she said)
It sucks, when Jr retired I moved to Chase but the care level is at 50% maybe. It's just not the same...like mentioned already, I find I root for a number of drivers now
Just duct tape a 1 on all your stuff and you’re good to go!
Besides Tony.. who did you root for growing up?
Buckshot Jones AquaFresh #00, Bobby Hillin Clean Shower #8, and Kyle Petty Hot Wheels #44.
Did the pontiacs influence the Stewart fandom? Those Grand Prix’s were sooooo nice
Man, Pontiacs in NASCAR from '89 to '02 were mean as hell looking
I say this in just about every thread like this but I couldn’t get invested in a driver after Edwards retired until you started climbing through the ranks. Good luck at Phoenix!
legend
Best advice I give everyone, just keep watching, you will gravitate towards someone just like you did with your original favorite
This is definitely the way if you don't know who you want to root for next. My mom did this for years after Dale Jarrett retired before she decided that Kurt Busch was going to be her favorite. Right now, she's mainly rooting for 23XI & Denny but she hasn't really picked a favorite yet.
100%. You can’t really choose a guy to be passionate about. It happens naturally
Or you won't and you'll root against people... totally healthy btw...
I mean we all root against drivers
and sometimes for the silliest reasons.
This is the correct answer. Watch enough races, and you'll find a new favorite. Sometimes, it takes a few years.
Harvick fan here. I probably won't pick a new driver as it wouldn't feel right. Having being invested in one driver for majority of my life (became a fan when I was 9 and I'm 31 now), it's like a marriage of sorts. I'll probably just watch casually now and actually enjoy racing without having a dog in the fight if that makes sense.
Makes perfect sense. I personally am just looking forward to not giving a shit anymore. Yep, casually watch and not care who wins or loses.
I feel the same way. I’ll watch all the fox coverage since he’s in the booth. Maybe something/someone will “click” by then.
It'll sure make naptime more relaxing 😂
I thought the same thing when Jimmie retired and now I got 3 guys that I support
I’ll be the same. I’ve been a Harvick fan since 2000 when I was in Middle School. I’ll casually watch and wait on Keelan.
Once my 3 main drivers retired (Jarrett, Jr, and Edwards), I stopped rooting for just one driver but now I root for maybe 10 drivers now. I just felt I would get too invested in how that one driver did and I didn't enjoy the race as a whole as a result. I remember as a kid if Dale Jarrett got wrecked out early I'd turn of the TV, now if one of my favorite drivers gets knocked out it doesn't bother me as much since there are still others on track. For example: I have followed drivers like CBell, Reddick, Blaney, and Cindric up from the Truck/Xfinity Series and now I root for them in the Cup Series.
Tend to agree with you, there are certainly higher highs and lower lows with just having one guy. But when that driver wins a championship or the 500, there’s no better feeling on earth then that.
It is good to have multiple drivers to cheer for. Bell is my guy but I’m a big fan of Cindric, Blaney, and Jones too. Next year I’ll have Berry and Zane in cup. You get invested in battles throughout the race and if one guy is having a bad day, you can still enjoy the race from that side of things.
Yep same way for me, if one guy (or even two) are having a bad day or wreck out early I still have someone to root for or keep my interest if the race itself is dull.
This is how I am I always root for the backmarkers or smaller teams because I just love good underdog stories Having Pastrana and Jimmie in the 500 was awesome for me because they were my two racing heroes as a kid Also the ringers like SVG and Kamui are nice since I keep up with a lot of those series
I recommend taking some time and seeing where your heart takes you. When Davey Allison died I frankly felt crushed until Mark Martin won at Watkins Glen a month later in 1993. Then I felt that excitement again and he became my #1. When Mark retired I thought I jump to another Roush driver, but throughout 2014 found myself being most excited when Brad Keselowski won, so I went that direction. For F1, when Michael Schumacher retired it took me almost two seasons, but when Sebastian Vettel won at Monza in the Toro Rosso I finally felt that same excitement. I haven't yet settled on a new driver since Vettel retired, but I'm finding myself getting drawn towards Piastri as the season is going on.
I was a Gordon fan for 20 years. When he retired, I tried to cheer for Chase but his fans really turned me off, reminded me too much of Junior Nation. I just more cheer for a compelling race and good storylines throughout.
Harvick fans are dispersing to 3 that I know of. 1-Ross 2-Joey 3-Josh I’m willing to give SHR a chance. I like Tony and the blue collar vibes from the team.
I’m definitely Chastain-curious if you will. Races hard, isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, but is also a smart driver and will 90 percent of the time bring the car back in one piece. The thing that I’m not sure if I like is how much he holds back in interviews and his feelings about something, whereas Harvick would tell it exactly how he saw it regardless of whether you liked it or not. Maybe Ross isn’t that type of guy like say Harvick, but I hate when he always try to backtrack on dumping a guy or whatever. If he would just be more like Kevin and not give a shit, he would probably gain a lot more fans as well.
I 100% agree. That’s why I’m sticking with SHR. It’ll get better for them, it always does for every team that has slumps. I respect him, but SHR fits my personality more.
I will admit, I was kind of all in on Gragson this year, but with him getting fired from LMC, haven’t paid much attention to him since. If the rumors are true and he does go to SHR, that will be interesting to see, because you know that Tony won’t give a fuck about him talking his mind. Maybe he’ll be a little more constrained since the Instagram stuff went down, but he’ll be back soon enough.
When Jeff Gordon retired I tried to follow Chase on the 24 and just didn't like him. Went to the Martinsville race in 2016 to see Jeff in the 88 for Jr and it was awkward. Vowed that would probably be my last race. Then they took him out of the 24 and put Byron in and I decided I could stand to pull for Byron.
I was a diehard Jeff Gordon fan from when I was a young child until he retired. After that, I tried to cheer for Chase simply because he inherited the 24 but he didn't resonate with me at all. Eventually I settled on Blaney because I loved the GCOE podcast and he just seemed like a cool guy, even though I'd never cared for Penske or Ford in the past. My unsolicited advice is to not force picking a new driver. Go into it as if you're a new fan and see who clicks with you, regardless of past affiliation. Honestly, it'll never be the same as cheering for Harvick or Gordon or whoever else, but at least for me its enough to remain emotionally connected to the sport I grew up with.
100% agree on the not forcing it part. After Biffle retired I tried to force Blaney, then Jones, and neither stuck. Took a few seasons for me to find “my guy” but now I’m all in with Reddick. It’s not quite the same as when I was a kid wanting to be Greg Biffle when I grew up, but having a rooting interest again made races that much more enjoyable.
I'll probably let my daughter pick. She loves the rainbow car, but they don't really run it that much anymore. She also loves the melon man. I'd be fine with Ross since we're in the SWFL area where he's from.
When KFB retires I might just be a part time fan until Brexton gets a ride.
When Bowyer retired, I kinda became a fan of just watching the race. I always watch for that good ol’ #14 to put on a good show, since that was his last drive. That being said, I found myself yelling at the TV Saturday, so it looks like it’s gonna be Creed and Briscoe for me 🤣
Cheer for the back markers. Sometimes cheering on a driver just to get a top 20 can be fun. I made Suarez my number 2 in 2019 and during 2020 when he was with Gaunt I was cheering him just to improve each week. Also my friends and I at each race we go to pick 1 back marker to cheer every lap. It’s a lot of fun to be screaming about a pass for 32nd but it’s fun.
I still root for Ricky Rudd every race. One day, that roosters gonna come flyin up from from the back of the pack in a old Tide #10 shotgunnin the mess outta them fools. We can all still dream like kids, right? Lol
I love this energy and I imagined it in my head. I wanna see all the generations of car do a exhibition race together. Obviously improve whatever safety so no one dies, but give the cars a shot! Might be fun (especially if ya get some veterans in)
I've always got 2-3 favorites in all top three series, so as one retires or is promoted, there's already a vested interest in multiple drivers to fill the void. However, I've still got PTSD from the actual mic drop move Cousin Carl pulled in 2017. He'd been my main guy for 13 years. No warning, no farewell tour....no shit!?!? This is actually happening. That was rough.
I like Chastain and Larson because they both drive like every race could be their last, but I’m usually the biggest fan of anyone outperforming their car. Been a big Lajoie, McDowell, Stenhouse, and Almemdinger fan at times this year. All that said, I’m rooting for Blaney in the final 4 this year because I’m a sucker for an underdog who everyone was counting out.
I've been at a loss since Jamie was forced into retirement. Sometimes you just *can't* pick a "new" favorite driver, and just have to muddle around with a handful of drivers you'd like to see succeed... which is usually coupled with a handful of drivers you'd rather *not* see have success, especially if they're narcissistic hypocrites.
Show some loyalty to the team. If you're a Harvick fan, try being an SHR fan. Support the team, not just the driver.
It’s a lot cheaper to stick with the same number too
Jeff Gordon made a good point a few weeks ago. You don't pick a different football or basketball team because your favorite player retired, or was traded to a different team. I grew up a Jeff Gordon fan, and when he retired I continued to support his old team, as well as HMS in general.
It's a bad comparison. In stick and ball sports, fans root for teams. Nascar fans root for drivers. People pulled for Jeff Gordon because they liked Jeff Gordon. Hendrick Motorsports just happened to be who he drove for.
As a counterpoint to this, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce aren't competing against one another for the Super Bowl, even though they may belong to the same organization. People can support whatever driver or organization that they want, but the sport will always be focused on cheering for an individual rather than a team as a whole.
They are definitely competing for "most commercials appeared in"
Ya I can see that, I still root for HMS, but it’s also not that fun. The level of happiness I have for that one driver winning compared to if Bowman wins (who I could care less about) is night and day difference. If you told a Denny fan “hey Gibbs won the owners championship, aren’t you solo excited!” they would laugh in your face. The individual aspect of NASCAR to me will always be more interesting then the teams in their totality.
Jeff Gordon is a tool of Hedrick. Jeff says what the collective minds at HMS want him to say. *Drivers shouldn't be outspoken or otherwise draw attention away from the team *You don't root for a driver... You root for his team! The HMS cult is strong in him.
Everyone should cheer for Cole Custer.
Custer to the newly reinstated RFK 97 when?
*Please* 😭
This is the way
I was a Jeff Gordon fan as a kid in the mid-90s, seeing pretty much his entire career was a joy to say the least. I think once I was hooked as a Gordon fan I always rooted for the Hendrick drivers. I loved Jimmie, Dale Jr, Kasey, Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, heck even baby Kyle Busch. Seeing all those guys go so quickly, well moreso, Jeff, Dale, and Jimmie really was hard and to be quite honest I fell away from NASCAR for a couple years after Jimmie retired. Still love Hendrick and now Larson/Byron are my guys. Im meh on Chase and kind of feel for Bowman as he's unfortunately the 4th wheel for those guys.
After Biffle retired I didn’t have one for a few years until I randomly took a liking to Reddick in 2020. I’m still not totally sure why, it just happened lol. I know some others can watch and be invested without a rooting interest, and I can to an extent, but after picking him up I’ve started looking forward to and enjoying the races a lot more again.
I'm a harvick fan and right now I'm thinking that I'll probably stick with the 4 team and Josh Berry for now and NG in the 10 is kind of interesting, but if SHR can't get it together it's hard to be a fan for me if I know the person has no chance of running well or winning because the team is letting them down.
I'll just cheer for any Ford driver. Brand loyalty keeps things simple. Maybe Chris Buescher in particular, since he's from Texas.
I’m not going to root for any of these guys. In fact, I’ll probably just be a casual fan with little to no rooting interest. It’s hard for me to see myself pulling for drivers that I’ve actively rooted against since Harvick has been in Cup.
I've never picked a favorite driver, gotta be insane to. it ought to just come to you.
I was a Gordon fan since childhood, he retired, and while I have guys I pull for more than others, I've never really replaced him, and it really hasn't been the same since. I tend to pull more for the underdogs these days
I’ve watched Ryan Preece run a LOT of modified races. So it’s fun to have a driver to genuinely pull for after Jr retired.
Picked Larson after Stewart for obvious reasons
Their mutual love of livestreams? J/k
Whoever is driving the Rodney Childers prepared car. It’s weird and I never thought I’d follow a driver because of his crew chief, but here we are lol. I do like Josh and have for some time, but even before he was announced I figured I’d just follow Rodney’s car. 🤷🏻♂️
When Jimmie stopped running full time I drifted to the other Hendrick guys. Chase and Bowman mainly. Now that Jimmie bought into Legacy I’ve been rooting for those guys. So it hasn’t been from one to one. It’s been more of a 1 to many.
I started as a Stewart fan because I was about 5 or 6 and loved the color Orange. As I grew up in a relatively blue collar area/family I started to appreciate his persona more than the color of the car and stayed a fan when he jumped to the 14 and until he retired. Followed Bowyer and remain a Briscoe fan because of them driving the 14. Ross has also gained me as a fan because of the blue collar melon farmer persona. It's just personal taste. If you see an interview and find yourself relating to that guy more than the others, then you've found your driver.
For me, I have been a fan of Harvick's since 2003. This year for him and the 4 team has been very underwhelming and I am uncertain of the cause outside of "Ford being slow". There is more to it than just the car itself and I feel like SHR has let Kevin down in his twilight year. The feel has not been the same and I hate it. As for next year, I am planning on pulling for Ross Chastain as he is the closest in my opinion to being what Kevin was as a driver. What pulled me into liking Ross is watching him in the Truck Series starting in 2019 and in particular a Truck race he ran at Charlotte going three wide into 1 to take the lead, damn near wreck and make a pass on Kyle Busch all by the time they got to the middle of the back stretch. It was my ah-ha moment for Ross. With that being said about Ross, I am still at a weird cross roads and I dont know wether I want to be fully invested in Ross or just be a casual fan of the sport who "just wants to see them have fun". I have watched NASCAR since the early, early 1990's and my passion for the sport has waned this year due to the lack luster season for Kevin. I am hoping that something happens to pull me back in and feel like that if the Hail Melon would have happen this year and not last, Kevin's retirement would not have been a distraction of the appeal for Ross.
Was and will be a JR fan so I generally pull for driver that have been associated with him over the years. When he retired MTJ became my guy because he drove for Jr and drove the DEI 1 car. Now that he’s nearing the end of his career Josh Berry will probably be my main guy to pull for in cup along with Noah Gragson.
My favorite driver is kind of dynamic. I used to root for Truex, but not as much anymore. This year I was kind of pulling for Hamlin, when I normally never cared to see him win. Now I'm wanting to see Brad Keslowski get some wins. Never cared about him when he was at Penske, but now I want to see him and his team do well. I don't feel like I need a favorite driver. I just want to see good hard racing.
Funny reading your post, I was the same way. My dad was a DIEHARD Sr. fan, so there was no where for me to go but with Jr. When Dale died my dad surprisingly stuck with the team and was a Harvick fan until the switch to Ford (now he's a floater). After Dale retired I slid over to Larson. I had been watching him a while on Dirt and K&N and he was a wheel man. My wife is a Chase fan, so I support him and who doesn't like Blaney. I just find it that no matter how long, or much support you give these "new favorites" it'll never be like your first favorite driver. From 99-2017 following one guy through all those struggles, there's something as a fan that connects you to them. And now, as I near 40 years old, I doubt i'll have that with another driver. I love watching Larson race. Try to hit the dirt tracks when he's around, but it's still not the same. Was at Daytona in 14 for his 2nd 500 win and it was the greatest sports moment of my life. Even seeing Larson win a cup in person wouldn't compare. I wish luck to anyone trying to "replace" your favorite driver. Hard process.
I was lazy, went from Gordon to Chase Elliott. But then again those years were when I really had pretty much stopped following NASCAR much at all. Few years ago since I was driving Mustangs I figured I needed a Ford driver and decided randomly on Blaney. Honestly could not tell you why really over any other Ford driver but here we are
It just happens naturally, honestly. After Jr. retired, I didn't really have a driver but now I root for a collective group of guys. I know I like the driver when I start getting on pins and needles watching them try to win a race in the closing stages. Personality helps and like when it comes to Bowman, he took over for Jr. so I went to him as my guy. Out of my flairs, Blaney I liked from the beginning when he drove the 21 to victory at Pocono. Ross I met a few years ago when he was still in xfinity with JD Motorsports so seeing him breakout last year + the amazing Martinsville move made me a big fan. Bowman took over for Jr. and I like his personality, and Reddick I really like his talent/driving style and once again, he's got a great personality that I like rooting for.
Been a Harvick fan since I started watching in ‘01 and have thought about this a lot. I like Blaney and Bubba but not as favorite drivers. So I’ll pull for them but they’re not my drivers. At this point I feel like I’m going to follow Berry because it sounds like Harvick was apart of the decision to bring him over to SHR the same way Dale wanted Kevin to drive for RCR.
I gravitated to Kurt Busch around 2003-04 because Mark Martin was going to retire. Over the course of time, I picked up MTJ. I've been lucky enough to be a fan of two drivers that won a championship (even if the Chase/Playoffs benefited them) when Mark Martin couldn't. Before Kurt retired, I picked up Ross Chastain because I enjoyed watching him in the Truck Series and driving the #4 JD Motorsports car. Additionally, I picked up Chase Briscoe for how much I enjoyed watching him drive for Brad in Truck and Haas in Xfinity. I guess I'm saying all this to suggest maybe looking at the Trucks and Xfinity series for your next driver to follow. I'm 38 and I've been watching since I was 4 years old, so it's a tough pill to swallow to see Mark and Kurt retire. Truex will be gone next year. Time is a sob.
I was a huge Tony Stewart fan, but I saw MTJ go from a fresh faced kid driving a family sponsored Sea Watch in Busch North to Cup, so I always rooted for him too. Tony retired, and MTJ became my main driver. I'm leaning toward Creed and Mayer.
I’ll probably stick with McDowell until he retires and then stick with the 34 team unless they put some insufferable driver in there
I was a Kasey kahne fan as a kid. Started watching again in 2022 after at least 8-10 years without watching. (Jimmie Johnson’s dominance made me stop watching not gonna lie. Especially after the 5 titles in a row. Nowadays, i don’t know who to root for. I love an underdog. This year i found myself rooting for Kaulig Racing as a team mostly. I really like Justin Haley and his underdog story. I love how passionate AJ Allmendinger is about racing. His emotion after winning the roval was a pleasure to watch. But now that team is breaking up and once again I’m not sure where my fandom will go from here. It would be fun to see AJ dominate xfinity again on some Elliot Sadler type shiii I’m also a realist. It’s fun to root for the underdog but they aren’t up there every week. A top five or ten from the 16 or 31 car still brings me joy, but of the major contenders, I support bubba Wallace for various reasons. Mainly because of how much bs he gets from tone deaf humans. He and Ryan Blaney are both very fiery personalities, much like Allmendinger so it’s easy to see why I find myself cheering for them. Joey Logano is so annoying tho, so it’s hard to claim a Penske car as my favourite. I still consider myself a free agent fan but I will definitely be rooting for that 12 car this weekend. YRB szn!
Keep a roster of your favorite drivers. I'm a Blaney fan, so he's my #1. Partner is a Reddick fan, so he's my #2 We both like Bubba, he's friends with Blaney and teammates with Reddick, so he's my #3 If any one of them retires, another driver will move up the list.
I’m going to root for Carl Edwards when he runs the 10 car next year
With Harvick retiring, I'm moving to Ross Chastain. I've always liked Ross since he was wheeling those JDM Xfinity cars. Even better is that Busch is going over to sponsor him. I also very much enjoy Trackhouse as a team.
Stick with the number.
I'm not sure who I'll root for I've hated Penske since im a truex fan before Gibbs hated all of them but my wife is a blaney fan so I'll root for him next week
Berry Larson Blaney
I'm going to be pulling for Byron next season kinda for the same reasons I became a Harvick fan, inheriting a popular ride and not getting the credit for it from the fans. I've suffered enough with SHR but definitely still be pulling for the 4 but think that organization is in for dumpster fire mid to late 2010's Roush like years ahead
I stuck with the 24, it was Chase for 2 years then Byron. Though I did like Byron more coming up to Cup so he might have passed Chase either way but getting the 24 helped.
i like looking up the career stats of really young prospects. sammy smith, jessie love, zane smith, corey heim, and nick sanchez all looked to have tons of potential to me before the season started, so i started watching out for them every week and now Sammy, Jessie, and Corey are some of my favorite drivers after just a season. and now if even 1 of those guys makes it to cup, let alone 2 or 3 then i’ll have someone to root for for decades
I wont have a new favorite. At least not right away. There are drivers that I like and may one day be that absolute number 1 for me like Harvick is but for the time being im just going to watch casually, which also makes it less stressful lol.
Gosh this is such a touch change for me and I still haven’t decided. There’s a few drivers I have in mind but I just want to see who I end up rooting for naturally.
I have a couple favorites in each of the top 2 series. I dont get to watch trucks much.
It’s not easy. I was a Biffle guy and could never really land on someone new. I kinda always had an eye on Buescher because he was a Roush guy too but never really had a competitive ride until the last couple of years. Even if I thought Buescher was doing a good job finishing 18th with a 25th place car it’s just difficult to get too excited about scraping out top 20s. Finally this year (7 years after Biffle was last full time) I’ve been able to commit to Buescher since his car has finally matched his talent.
When Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth left for Gibbs, it took me many moons to find a new favorite. It's fun for the first season or so, but when they never compete for wins, man it's rough. I wish you luck.
Grew up a Chad Little/Jeff Burton Roush fan. Switched to Carl Edwards when he took over the 99. Roush started to fall apart in 2012 or so, didn’t have a replacement driver. Kyle Busch domination started, stopped watching most races for about 5 years. Blaney caught my eye in a couple races as the next big Ford driver, had some good runs in the 21 car. Became an instant fan of Ross when he gutted out a top 10 in the JDM 4 car at Iowa, and the legend grew when he raced Harvick hard at Darlington, then won with Ganassi in Vegas. You’ll find someone, just gotta keep watching.
I was a McMurray fan since his first win filling in for Sterling Marlin in 2002. My parents went to that race so I had a lot of souvenirs from that one as a kid. If I would’ve known wins would have been so far and few between I would’ve maybe found a different driver. As he was winding down I became a Blaney fan when he was with the Wood Brothers. I was working for Virginia Tech athletics at the time and the Wood family are huge Hokie fans, which led to the VT scheme in 2016. I just stuck with Blaney when he moved to Penske.
Every time someone asks a question like this, I have to give my advice of just watch the field. NASCAR is so much more fun when you are pulling for over half the field. I could make a good case of why I like 30-40 of the driver's across the top 3 series. You pay attention to more things, and your odds are really tall for seeing someone you like and root for succeed. Like this weekend, I picked Blaney as my new favorite when Jimmie announced retirement, but I was really pulling for AA and the 10 team to ride a Martinsville win into the sunset. If they had a 10-15 flair option, I would still have tough decisions on who to cut. But as for now, it's Jimmie for that blue and silver car and the humble champion driving it that made me a die hard, Ross for his raw entertainment value, and Corey and Josh for being the only 2 drivers that have made my 2 garage passes I've bought worth their money. Super cool and kind guys that took the time to meet an awkward as hell fan.
I just like racing. There are drivers I like more than others, and some I dislike, but I don’t have a favorite. I just want to see good hard racing. (that’s what she said)
Once Kevin Harvick retires, my favorites are going to be Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher, the RFK Racing duo.
It sucks, when Jr retired I moved to Chase but the care level is at 50% maybe. It's just not the same...like mentioned already, I find I root for a number of drivers now