In a news conference at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Friday, ‘s trajectory in NASCAR’s Cup Series took center stage following an unintentional tip-off from Christopher Bell. While discussing the potential reshuffling at Joe Gibbs Racing after Martin Truex Jr.’s shock retirement, Bell seemed to prematurely welcome Briscoe as a future team member, saying, “And whenever Chase comes into the car…” His statement, followed by an awkward pause, fueled widespread speculation.
Chase Briscoe, currently a driver for the No. 14 Ford at Stewart-Haas Racing, found himself at the heart of rumored relocations involving major players such as Denny Hamlin, Ty Gibbs, and Kyle Larson.
The rumor caught Briscoe off-guard. Engaged in a sprint car race at a nearby dirt track, he was unplugged from the digital world due to poor cellular service. Briscoe commented, as quoted by Motorsport:
“I had no signal last night and I was running the Sprint car. So, Christopher texted me, ‘Hey, I messed up’ and I said, ‘What do you mean? He said, ‘Check Twitter.’
Chase Briscoe, driver of the #14 Overstock.com Ford, waits on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 at WWT Raceway on June 01, 2024 in Madison, Illinois. Chase Briscoe addresses…
Sean Gardner/Getty Images
“Then, I got to this track, and I had no signal for like six hours, so I couldn’t get anything to load, no text messages. Couldn’t send, couldn’t call anybody like, it was terrible.
“So, I had no idea what had happened and what was even going on.”
He continued:
“My first thought was, ‘Man, I need to call Rick Hendrick about that ride that opened up
“I thought what Larson said was pretty, pretty good. I don’t know. I laughed about it.”
The thought of transitioning to a new team is “bittersweet” for Briscoe. He underscored the deep bonds and seamless collaboration within his current lineup at SHR, lamenting:
“Wherever I go it is going to be just different, you know, learning a new group of guys and how they do things and respond, but it is really bittersweet. I can’t express enough how tight knit the No. 14 group is.
“I mean, we were at the shop Tuesday and just talking about how it’s going to be so weird for all this us not to work together. This group will never work as a whole.
“It’s kind of sad knowing that just how good we feel like we all are as a group. It’s hard to find.”
While the unintentional reveal by Bell was brushed off with light humor and amicable exchanges, the light it sheds on the backstage dynamics of NASCAR teams is telling.
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Source : Newsweek