As if Silly Season 2020 couldn’t get any sillier, former NASCAR Cup Series driver Matt Tifft, and current driver / owner BJ McLeod have announced the acquisition of a Cup Series charter.
Excited to share we’re going @nascar Cup Series racing in 2021! More news to come! pic.twitter.com/GEf1tDNsYU
— BJ McLeod (@bjmcleod78) October 23, 2020
The news after Go Fas Racing confirmed that they would go part-time in 2021, and that the half share that owner Archie St. Hilaire held was to be sold to a “partner” of Circle Sport’s Joe Falk.
Thanks to the acquisition of the portion of the charter surrendered by Hilarie, Tifft and McLeod, along with Joe Falk, will launch a brand new Cup endeavor. Having acquired a charter, the team is now guaranteed entry into every Cup Series race for the duration the team holds the charter, forgoing the stress of having to make the race on speed or points.
24-year-old Tifft has been absent from a Cup Series car since 2019 after a seizure sidelined him at Martinsville Speedway in 2019. John Hunter Nemechek was tapped to pilot the final three race in the No. 36 Ford, which eventually led to a full-season of Cup racing with Front Row Motorsports in the No. 38 Ford.
McLeod, who has spent a majority of his 2020 season in the Xfinity Series, added the title of “owner” to his Cup Series duties, piloting his own No. 78 in 13 starts. McLeod has been an owner in the Xfinity Series since 2016, fielding multiple cars per weekend under the “B.J. McLeod Motorsports” banner. For the past two seasons, BJ has bounced around between his team, and spending a majority of his time with fellow team JD Motorsports as a driver.
The team name, and driver are expected to be announced soon.