Yahoo Sports It's finally happening: Kurt Busch to drive No. 1 car at Chip Ganassi Racing in 2019
Kurt Busch’s arrival at Chip Ganassi Racing is about to be official.
Busch’s long-expected signing with the team was announced Tuesday. He’ll join Kyle Larson at CGR and replaces Jamie McMurray in the team’s No. 1 car. Sponsor Monster is going to CGR with Busch.
Busch moves over from Stewart-Haas Racing and he officially said goodbye to that team on Sunday. He’s driven for Stewart-Haas Racing since 2014 and has made the playoffs in every season with SHR.
Making the playoffs will be a tougher ask at CGR. The No. 1 car has struggled, though it’s fair to wonder just how much of those struggles had to do with the driver and not the team. McMurray has just one win since the end of the 2010 season and has never finished inside the top 10 of the points standings in his Cup Series career. Larson, meanwhile, has finished inside the top 10 in each of the past three seasons. He’s also led 2,134 laps over the past two seasons. McMurray has led fewer than 1,900 laps in his 16-season Cup Series career.
Busch, 40, came up to the Cup Series full time in 2001 with Roush Fenway Racing and won the 2004 Cup Series title with the team. He moved from Roush to Penske in 2006 after a falling out with Roush in 2005 and stayed with Penske through the 2011 season.
Busch’s temper got the best of him at the end of the 2011 season and he spent most of the 2012 season driving for Phoenix Racing. He then moved to Furniture Row Racing toward the end of the season and spent the 2013 season there before joining SHR.
McMurray does not have a ride lined up for 2019 and Ganassi has offered him a ride in the Daytona 500. SHR has not filled the No. 41 car that Busch has occupied. The top contender for that car is considered to be Daniel Suarez, who lost his ride at Joe Gibbs Racing when the team signed Martin Truex Jr.
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Nick Bromberg is a writer for Yahoo Sports.
Follow @NickBromberg on Twitter
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