Bubba Wallace’s spotter points to Chase Briscoe being Martin Truex Jr.’s replacement

Bubba Wallace's spotter, Freddie Kraft anticipates the Joe Gibbs Racing team to announce the major signing of Chase Briscoe soon. He believes that the Joe Gibbs Racing team did not want to build the #19 team completely with a new driver and that's why they are going for the Stewart Haas Racing's #14 driver.

Martin Truex Jr. who drives the #19 Toyota Camry for JGR announced his retirement last week ahead of the Iowa Corn 350. Since then there has been speculation about who might be the one to replace him in the 2025 season.

As per the Athletic, Chase Briscoe might have the highest chance to be signed as the next Joe Gibbs Racing driver for the #19 Toyota.

The rumor was recently also highlighted by NASCAR insider Freddie Kraft on the latest episode of his podcast, Door Bumper Clear.

"I think everybody's seen the rumors of Chase Briscoe's getting into 19. I think you could probably expect an announcement on that in the next week or so. [...] I don't think they wanted to start a rebuild. You don't want to put a Corey Hein, you know, or you know, so who else you gonna get? You know, there's the Eric Jones out there maybe, but do you really want to poach a driver from another Toyota team?" he said.

Kraft also shared another reason why hiring Chase Briscoe could be advantageous for Joe Gibbs.

"You know, you're gonna steal somebody? Well, that's gonna cost you a lot of money. And signing somebody like Chase Briscoe - might not cost you a lot of money," he added.

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Why is Chase Briscoe believed to drive the #19 car more than others?

Before joining the NASCAR Cup Series full-time in 2021, Briscoe was one of the best drivers in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. There, in 83 starts Briscoe won 11 races and managed to finish in the top 5 on the championship standings during his two full-time seasons.

Currently driving for Stewart Haas Racing, Briscoe stands at P17 with 370 points on the table, merely 13 points behind the next spot, with one top-5 and 5 top-10 finishes.

Although #14's career stats might not be jaw-dropping, he has delivered some good performances for Stewart-Haas Racing, a team that has been experiencing a dry spell since the 2021 season.

The 29-year-old has also mentioned that although no sponsorship deals are currently in place for the upcoming season, it’s likely that he will bring some of his current sponsors with him to his new team in 2025. With backing from sponsors like Mahindra Tractors, Briscoe can offer both talent and funding.

Joining a high-profile team like Joe Gibbs Racing would be a tremendous boon for Chase Briscoe. The move would not only allow him much exposure but also let him work with seasoned drivers such as Denny Hamlin.