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2016 Team Reviews: JTG-Daugherty and Germain Racing

Casey Mears (L) won't return to Germain in 2017 while AJ Allmendinger gains a teammate at JTG-Daugherty. (Getty)
Casey Mears (L) won’t return to Germain in 2017 while AJ Allmendinger gains a teammate at JTG-Daugherty. (Getty)

Did you know we’re closer to the start of the 2017 Daytona 500 than we are to when the Chase began at Chicago in September? Crazy.

But before we start getting ready for 2017, let’s take a look back at 2016. We’re combining JTG-Daugherty and Germain Racing into a single post because both are affiliated with Richard Childress Racing.

GERMAIN RACING
Driver: Casey Mears

Points position: 28th (five spots lower than 2015)
Top 5s: 0
Top 10s: 0

Mears got an ad campaign with his family in 2016, but that didn’t translate to greater success on the track. In addition to dropping five spots in the points standings — and having a best finish of 12th — Mears’ average finish fell 2.5 positions, completed 71 fewer laps than the year before and had four fewer lead lap finishes.

The season ended on a relative high note, however. Mears finished with two-straight 18th-place finishes after having just four top-20 finishes all year.

Mears won’t have a chance to bounce back in 2017, with Germain Racing at least. Ty Dillon — Childress’ grandson — is taking Mears’ place with the team. Mears is currently without a ride for the 2017 season.

JTG-DAUGHERTY RACING
Driver: AJ Allmendinger

Points position: 19th (three spots higher than 2015)
Top 5s: 2
Top 10s: 9

Allmendinger’s performance ticked up during the Chase. One problem, the No. 47 wasn’t in the Chase.

Four of Allmendinger’s nine top-10 finishes came in the final six races of the season. He finished eighth at Kansas and then ended the season with an eighth-place finish at Homestead.

His best run of the year came at Martinsville in the spring where he finished second. The finish moved him from 19th to 12th in the points standings, the highest position he occupied all year.

Allmendinger’s finish in the standings was the fourth time in the last seven seasons that he’s finished in the top 20. Yeah, just one of those finishes has been because of a Chase berth, but it’s hard not to make the argument that Allmendinger is a top-20 driver.

That top 20 capability could be challenged in 2017. JTG-Daugherty is expanding to two teams and will field a car for Chris Buescher as a teammate to Allmendinger. While the additional data can be helpful, teams have struggled initially after expansion. And if Germain Racing is more closely aligned with RCR because of Dillon’s presence, will that have any affect on JTG’s alliance?

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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!