It’s never too early to start thinking about next year. The top Cup Series teams are already thinking about 2026 and beyond. I’m still trying to figure out what I’m doing on leap day. Let’s take a look at some moves that make too much sense.

Kaulig Racing – First up, finding a full-time driver for the #16 Kaulig Racing Chevy. Erik Jones has been up and down in his career so far, but the current driver of the #43 Legacy Motor Club Camry has all the talent needed to bring a team to life. The move would put Jones on a team with more resources and less pressure to carry a team on his back.

Trackhouse Racing – Replace Daniel Suarez with Zane Smith. The move would give Ross Chastain a young talent to work with, and open up more sponsor opportunities that Suarez doesn’t have the reach to land. Smith has a much higher ceiling of talent, so this move makes perfect sense.

Stewart-Haas Racing – Drop from four full-time teams down to two, and switch from Ford back to Chevy. There will be a battle between Chevy and Toyota to land one of the more successful teams in the sport, and Chevy should win out. Selling two of their charters to a team looking to add another driver should be easy, and the money from that sale should help reorganize the program and stack three teams for the future.

23XI Racing – Buy that charter that was just mentioned from SHR. The future for Toyota is in numbers. After expanding to eight full-time teams with the addition of Legacy Motor Club, Toyota can now begin to bring up more pipeline drivers. For years, TRD drivers have moved on to other Cup Series teams because of a log jam waiting list. By adding one more seat, TRD can keep more talent and simultaneously enhance their Cup Series presence.

Spire Motorsports – Replace Zane Smith with Riley Herbst. Herbst is coming into his own as a solid driver at every type of track. The combination of Hocevar, LaJoie and Herbst could set up a big jump in performance for the team. Herbst could bring Monster Energy with him, or the team could opt to put Spire back on the car and wait for Herbst to prove his investment worthiness.