
NASCAR Cup Series Team Charters History
What are Charters?
NASCAR Cup Series team charters were created for the 2016 NASCAR Cup Series season. Their purpose? To incentivize team owners who were bought into the sport for the long haul.
The system locks 36 cars into the show each weekend and the charters were originally granted to teams that had run every race in each of the last three seasons prior to the 2016 season. The charter system, in addition to a guaranteed spot in the field, also gives the chartered teams a higher cut of the purse money for each race.
According to the initial rules of the Team Charters, each Charter was allowed to be leased one year between 2016 and 2020. This agreement has been renewed, which means each Charter is allowed to be leased one year between 2021 and 2024.
Here are all of the current NASCAR Cup Series team charters and where they originated from:
Originating Charter: No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing
- Chip Ganassi Racing sold team and Charter to Trackhouse for the 2022 season, No. 1 Trackhouse team will use No. 1 charter for 2022 season (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 2 Team Penske
- Team Penske’s No. 2 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 3 Richard Childress Racing
- Richard Childress Racing’s No. 3 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
- Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 4 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports
- Hendrick Motorsports moved their No. 48 charter to their newly rebranded No. 5 car for the 2021 season.
Originating Charter: No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing
- Roush Fenway Racing moved their No. 16 charter to their No. 6 car for the 2017 season.
- Roush Fenway Racing has changed their name to Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing for the 2022 season.
Originating Charter: No. 23 BK Racing
- BK Racing sold the No. 23 charter to Front Row Motorsports’ No. 38 team for 2019.
- Front Row Motorsports leased the No. 38 charter to Rick Ware Racing’s No. 53 team for 2020.
- Front Row Motorsports sold this charter to Rick Ware Racing’s No. 53 team for 2021.
- Rick Ware Racing sold the No. 53 charter to Spire Motorsports, who will use it for their No. 7 team in 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 31 Richard Childress Racing
- Richard Childress Racing renumbered their No. 31 car to the No. 8 for the 2019 season.
Originating Charter: No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports
- Hendrick Motorsports moved the No. 24 charter to their No. 9 team for the 2018 season.
Originating Charter: No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
- Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 10 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
- Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 11 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing
- Roush Fenway Racing leased the No. 6 charter to the No. 37 JTG Daugherty Racing team for 2017.
- Roush Fenway Racing sold the No. 6 charter to the No. 12 Team Penske team for 2018.
Originating Charter: No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
- Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 14 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 51 HScott Motorsports
- HScott Motorsports renumbered their No. 51 charter team to No. 15 for 2016.
- HScott Motorsports sold their No. 15 charter to the No. 15 Premium Motorsports team for 2017.
- Premium Motorsports sold their No. 15 team and charter to Rick Ware Racing in 2020.
Originating Charter: No. 7 Tommy Baldwin Racing
- Tommy Baldwin Racing sold the No. 7 charter to Leavine Family Racing’s No. 95 team for 2017.
- Leavine Family Racing sold the No. 95 charter to Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 team for 2021.
- Spire Motorsports sold two of their three charters to Kaulig Racing for 2022. Kaulig will use the No. 77 Charter for their No. 16 car in 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing
- Roush Fenway Racing has changed their name to Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing for 2022.
Originating Charter: No. 55 Michael Waltrip Racing
- Michael Waltrip Racing sold their No. 55 charter to the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing team for 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
- Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 20 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 32 Go FAS Racing
- Go FAS Racing leased the No. 32 charter to the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team for 2017.
- Go FAS Racing sent the No. 32 charter to the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team through a partnership for 2018.
- Go FAS Racing sold the No. 32 charter to the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing team for 2021.
Originating Charter: No. 22 Team Penske
- Team Penske’s No. 22 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 13 Germain Racing
- Germain Racing sold the No. 13 charter to the No. 23 23XI Racing team for 2021.
Originating Charter: No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports
- Hendrick Motorsports moved the No. 5 charter over to their No. 24 team for 2018.
Originating Charter: No. 78 Furniture Row Racing
- Furniture Row Racing sold the No. 78 charter to Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 team for 2019.
- Spire Motorsports leased the No. 77 charter to Trackhouse Racing’s No. 99 team for 2021.
- Spire Motorsports sold two charters to Kaulig Racing following the 2021 season, the Charter that was leased to Trackhouse Racing in 2021 will be used by the No. 31 Kaulig team in 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 35 Front Row Motorsports
- Front Row Motorsports moved the No. 35 charter over to their No. 34 team for 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 83 BK Racing
- BK Racing sold the No. 83 charter to Front Row Motorsports for 2017.
- Front Row Motorsports leased the charter to TriStar Motorsports’ No. 72 team for 2017.
- Front Row Motorsports moved the charter to their No. 38 team for 2018.
- Front Row Motorsports moved the No. 38 charter to their No. 36 team for 2019.
- Front Row Motorsports moved the charter back to their No. 38 team for 2020.
Originating Charter: No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing
- Michael Waltrip Racing sold the No. 15 charter to Stewart-Haas Racing’s No. 41 team for 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 9 Richard Petty Motorsports
- Richard Petty Motorsports renumbered their No. 9 car to No. 44 for 2016.
- Richard Petty Motorsports leased the No. 9 charter to Go FAS Racing’s No. 32 team for 2017.
- Richard Petty Motorsports moved the No. 9 charter to their No. 43 team for 2018.
- Richard Petty Motorsports moved the charter to Rick Ware Racing’s No. 51 team through a partnership in 2019.
- Richard Petty Motorsports merged with GMS Racing to form Petty GMS Motorsports. The No. 9 charter was assigned to their No. 42 car for 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
- Petty GMS added Jimmie Johnson into the ownership group of the team and rebranded to LEGACY MOTOR CLUB for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Originating Charter: No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports
- Richard Petty Motorsports leased the No. 43 charter to Rick Ware Racing’s No. 51 team for 2018.
- Richard Petty Motorsports moved the No. 43 charter back to their No. 43 team for 2019.
- Richard Petty Motorsports rebranded to Petty GMS Motorsports going into 2022.
- Petty GMS added Jimmie Johnson into the ownership group of the team and rebranded to LEGACY MOTOR CLUB for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Originating Charter: No. 27 Richard Childress Racing
- Richard Childress Racing leased the No. 27 charter to StarCom Racing’s No. 00 team for 2018.
- Richard Childress Racing sold the No. 27 charter to StarCom Racing’s No. 00 team for 2019.
- StarCom Racing sold the No. 00 charter to 23XI Racing’s No. 45 team for 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
- JTG Daugherty Racing’s No. 47 team has been in possession of this charter since 2016.
Originating Charter: No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports
- Hendrick Motorsports moved their No. 88 charter to their No. 48 team for 2021.
Originating Charter: No. 38 Front Row Motorsports
- Front Row Motorsports leased the No. 38 charter to TriStar Motorsports’ No. 72 team for 2018.
- Front Row Motorsports sold the No. 38 charter to Rick Ware Racing’s No. 52 team for 2019.
- Rick Ware Racing renumbered their No. 52 team to No. 27 during the 2020 season.
- Rick Ware Racing renumbered their No. 27 team to No. 52 for 2021.
- Rick Ware Racing moved their No. 52 charter to their No. 51 car for the 2022 season (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).
Originating Charter: No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing
- Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 18 team was rebranded to the No. 54 for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Originating Charter: No. 62 Premium Motorsports
- Premium Motorsports leased the No. 62 charter to HScott Motorsports’ No. 46 team for 2016.
- Premium Motorsports sold the No. 62 charter to Todd Braun (according to Bob Pockrass), who then struck a deal to apply the charter to Furniture Row Racing’s No. 77 team for 2017.
- Braun took the charter to JTG Daugherty Racing’s No. 37 team for 2018 (again, according to Bob Pockrass).
- Braun took the charter to Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 team for 2021.
- Spire Motorsports will move the No. 7 charter to their No. 77 team for the 2022 season (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups.)
Originating Charter: No. 33 Circle Sport
- Circle Sport partnered the No. 33 charter with Leavine Family Racing’s No. 95 team for 2016.
- Circle Sport partnered the No. 33 charter with The Motorsports Group’s No. 33 team for 2017.
- Circle Sport partnered the No. 33 charter with Go FAS Racing’s No. 32 team for 2018.
- Circle Sport partnered the No. 33 charter with Live Fast Motorsports’ No. 78 team for 2021.
Originating Charter: No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing
- Chip Ganassi Racing sold their team and No. 42 charter to TrackHouse Racing’s No. 99 team for 2022 (confirmed by 2022 Clash practice groups).