NASCAR: The only team with no confirmed driver for 2022

The NASCAR Cup Series offseason is well underway, and there is still one team without a single confirmed driver for 2022.

The 2022 NASCAR Cup Series driver lineup has slowly but surely come together over the course of the last few months, and the charter market has played a key role in many of these developments.

But three weeks into the offseason between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, there is still quite a bit that we don’t know heading into next year.

First of all, only 32 of the 36 charters have confirmed homes for the 36-race 2022 campaign. It is expected that two of the other four, which were all operated by a single team in 2021, will change hands, while the other two should stay put.

There are also a number of teams that still have open seats for next year.

Who will replace Anthony Alfredo behind the wheel of the #38 Ford at Front Row Motorsports? Will Spire Motorsports secure a second charter after selling two of their three from 2021, and if so (or even if not), which drivers will split time behind the wheel of the #77 Chevrolet?

Which driver or drivers will split time with A.J. Allmendinger behind the wheel of the #16 Chevrolet in Kaulig Racing’s first season as a full-time, two-car operation?

And who all will be behind the wheel of the #78 Ford at Live Fast Motorsports throughout their second year in the sport, aside from team co-owner and this past season’s primary driver, B.J. McLeod?

But there is one team for which absolutely nothing has been confirmed on the driver front, and that is the team mentioned above in regard to running four charters: Rick Ware Racing.

The only conclusion that we can draw about Rick Ware Racing is that they are planning to run just two entries as opposed to four for the 2022 season. Three Fridays ago, they shared a Daytona 500 countdown on Twitter, and it included the logos for the #15 team and the #51 team.

In the 2021 season, they ran the #15 team, the #51 team, the #52 team and the #53 team, though the #51 team was classified as Petty Ware Racing since it was run using a charter owned by Richard Petty Motorsports.

It is well-documented that team owner Rick Ware is open to leasing out or selling at least one of his charters for the 2022 season, and his recent Twitter post subtly vindicates that, perhaps even indicating that a deal or deals are done but not yet announced.

With that being said, it is unknown whether or not one of the charters on the move will be the one owned by Richard Petty Motorsports.

Spire Motorsports, as noted above, are interested in a second charter, and newcomer GMS Racing are seeking a charter for their #94 Chevrolet, which is to be piloted by Ty Dillon throughout the 2022 season.

Once all of these questions are answered on the charter front, it would make sense for the team to begin announcing their driver lineup.

Of note, Rick Ware’s team have made the switch from Chevrolet to Ford for the 2022 season, and they have formed alliances with both Stewart-Haas Racing and Roush Yates Engines.