Adam Stevens, a 37-time race-winning crew chief in the NASCAR Cup Series, will not be present for Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway, according to a preliminary entry list released by NASCAR on Monday.
In the team’s pre-race preview, Joe Gibbs Racing says that Stevens suffered a double knee injury while enjoying vacation time with his family, and has since had surgery to repair both knees. Stevens is on the mend, but will not be at the racetrack for a couple of weeks.
“I hate that I won’t be at the track for a few weeks, but I will be fully engaged remotely,” said Stevens. “I am very thankful for the depth and strength of this 20 team and don’t anticipate my physical absence having any effect on our performance. The surgery went well, and I will be back at the track in a few weeks.”
Chris Sherwood will be taking over crew chief responsibilities at-track while Stevens remains at the shop and in the war room during the upcoming races. Sherwood has served as the car chief for Christopher Bell and the No. 20 Toyota Camry XSE throughout the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series campaign.
Stevens is a 10-year veteran of the NASCAR Cup Series, who since the start of 2021 has been working alongside Christopher Bell and the No. 20 Toyota Camry XSE team at Joe Gibbs Racing. In four seasons, the pairing has collected nine wins and ‘Championship 4’ berths in each of the last two years.
The Portsmouth, Ohio-native has worked as a crew chief for Joe Gibbs Racing since 2011, collecting 68 NASCAR National Series victories between the NASCAR Xfinity Series (2011 to 2014) and the NASCAR Cup Series (2015 to present).
NASCAR’s Team Roster Portal shows that Stevens will be absent through at least the next two NASCAR Cup Series events at Richmond Raceway and Michigan International Speedway.
In the first 22 events of the season, Bell and the No. 20 Toyota Camry have made it to Victory Lane on three occasions, scoring wins at Phoenix Raceway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
With seven top-five and 12 top-10 finishes this year, Bell currently sits eighth place in NASCAR Cup Series point standings, 98 points behind current leader Kyle Larson, and within 25 points of fifth place, which is currently occupied by Ryan Blaney.
