John Hunter Nemechek joins Legacy Motor Club as driver of Noah Gragson's former car

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John Hunter Nemechek, who raced in the NASCAR Cup Series as a rookie in 2020 and owns an Xfinity Series-best five victories this year, will return to Cup in 2024 as he will drive for Legacy Motor Club next season.

Nemechek will drive the No. 42 car, which was driven for much of this year by Noah Gragson, who parted ways with the team in August in the days following his suspension for liking a racially insensitive social media post on the death of George Floyd.

The 26-year-old Nemechek was being considered for the Legacy ride before Gragson’s off-track troubles as Gragson was struggling on the track. Nemechek has spent three seasons in the Toyota pipeline, and Legacy will move from fielding Chevrolets to fielding Toyotas starting next season.

Nemechek finished 27th in the Cup standings as a rookie in 2020 driving for Front Row Motorsports. Looking to compete more often for wins, he drove two seasons for Kyle Busch Motorsports in the trucks with seven victories. 

He moved to the Xfinity Series and Joe Gibbs Racing for this season. Nemechek sits second in the standings with one race remaining in the regular season.

“Going back to the Truck Series was humbling in a way, but it was the best thing I ever did for myself and my career,” Nemechek said in a news release. “I was able to compete for wins and two championships for KBM where we won races and were consistently one of the teams to beat week in and week out.”

Legacy Motor Club is co-owned by seven-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson and airline executive Maury Gallagher. Erik Jones is signed to drive the No. 43 car next year, and Johnson also will compete in select races. Johnson was a teammate to Nemechek’s father, Joe, at Hendrick Motorsports and raced against John Hunter in 2020.

“He is impressive both on and off the track and will be a great ambassador for Legacy M.C. and our partners,” Johnson said. “He will be a solid teammate to Erik, and I can’t wait to watch them both compete for wins and championships for years to come.”

Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including the past 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass, and sign up for the FOX Sports NASCAR Newsletter with Bob Pockrass.

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