In 2025, three NASCAR Cup Series drivers who are historically no strangers to Victory Lane all went winless.
Now, as the Cup Series prepares for the 2026 season, the members of this same trio all find themselves in contract years with their respective organizations.
Translation: Barring a significant uptick in performance this year, each man could be on the move for 2027.
So, who are these three drivers? And what makes their future so uncertain?
Let’s dive in.
Kyle Busch
Since joining Richard Childress Racing in 2023 following a wildly successful 15-year run at Joe Gibbs Racing, Kyle Busch has struggled. The 63-time Cup Series race winner has prevailed just three times in 108 starts for RCR.
And all three of those wins came before the summer of 2023. He’s currently stuck in a 93-race drought. That’s the longest of his career.
To further complicate matters, Busch missed the playoffs in both 2024 and 2025, finishing a career-worst 21st in the standings this past season.
If RCR’s decision to bring in Jim Pohlman as Busch’s new crew chief for 2026 doesn’t right the proverbial ship, the two-time Cup Series champion will almost certainly jump ship of his own accord ahead of 2027.
Tyler Reddick
Thankfully for Tyler Reddick, the future of 23XI Racing is no longer in doubt after the Michael Jordan and Denny Hamlin co-owned organization recently settled its lawsuit against NASCAR.
That means Reddick probably doesn’t have to worry about the company not having a seat available for him beyond 2026. The far bigger question is whether Reddick will actually want it.
After recording a total of eight Cup Series victories over the three previous years, Reddick came up winless in 2025.
Although he made the playoffs and finished ninth the standings, Reddick almost certainly won’t be satisfied with a comparable outcome this year. In fact, anything less than a multi-win season could send the California native searching for greener pastures.
Alex Bowman
Alex Bowman has been easily the weakest link at Hendrick Motorsports for most of the eight full-time seasons he’s spent with the four-car stable. Despite some promising moments, he probably needs to take it up a notch to secure another contract extension.
Last year, when his three Hendrick Motorsports teammates each went to Victory Lane multiple times, Bowman failed to taste victory even once. And he just barely made the playoffs. And needed an assist from a rival to make it in.
Even more problematic for Bowman, though, is that he’s celebrated a total of just two Cup Series wins over the past four seasons. That’s not acceptable at Hendrick Motorsports, which, by all measures, is the most successful organization in NASCAR history.
Given these realities, Bowman will likely need to make vast improvements in 2026 to stay employed.
