Noah Gragson Set to Compete For - and Against - Kaulig Racing in 2022

Gragson will be quite busy this season. He starts in the Daytona 500 for Beard Motorsports, then will compete in 14 Cup races for Kaulig Racing, and a full Xfinity season with JR Motorsports

Noah Gragson will make his first NASCAR Cup Series start this season, as he is slated to compete in the Daytona 500 with Beard Motorsports and has inked a 14-race deal to pilot the No. 16 Kaulig Chevrolet, splitting the schedule with AJ Allmendinger and Daniel Hemric.

In addition to the partial Cup schedule, Gragson returns to the NASCAR XFINITY Series behind the wheel of the No. 9 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, where he will run his fourth full season with the team and compete for the championship.

This means that on Saturdays, Gragson will be competing AGAINST Kaulig Racing, battling with Allmendinger and Hemric for the XFINITY Series championship. 

Noah Gragson celebrates after winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series Go Bowling 250 at Richmond Raceway on September 11, 2021. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)

Allmendinger, Hemric, and Gragson were all a part of the XFINITY Series Championship 4 in 2021, with Hemric winning the championship with a last-lap pass of incoming Cup Series rookie Austin Cindric.

But then on Sundays, Gragson will be competing FOR Matt Kaulig, Chris Rice and the men and women of Kaulig Racing in their first full-time foray in Cup Series competition.

While it’s definitely an interesting dynamic, don’t expect it to change the driving style of the 23-year old Gragson, known for being aggressive and oftentimes racing with a  checkers or wreckers mindset.

“I already told the Kaulig guys that I would like to apologize for Saturdays in advance, but Sundays I’m going to be full onboard with them," Gragson said. "I’m going to race the (crap) out of them on Saturdays and be all-in as a teammate on Sundays.

“It’s kind of what it is but I’m going to race as hard as I can for my respective race team on that day. I apologize in advance. I’m sure there are going to be more apologies throughout the season. We’re going to still beat and bang on Saturdays, not intentionally, but we are racing hard and racing for the wins and sometimes it comes down to that. But on Sundays, you kind of have to erase Saturdays and regroup on Sundays.”

Before getting started in the Next Gen car in the Kaulig camp, Gragson will attempt to make his Cup Series debut for the second consecutive season, driving the No. 62 for Beard Motorsports in the Daytona 500. As a non-chartered entry, Gragson and the Beard team will need to qualify their way into the 40-car field for the Great American Race.

Last season, the Las Vegas native didn’t make the field, as he failed to make a qualifying run after the car failed inspection three times. Then in his Duel, he was caught up in a crash with four laps to go.

While the goal is the same – make the field for the Daytona 500 – the circumstances are different.

“Last year we were kind of put in a box with not making it through tech for qualifying so we really had to race hard all race. This year is a bit different. We only have one car. We don’t have any other chassis at the shop. That’s going to be somewhat in the back of my head is that we have to keep the car together and there are no backup cars.

“It’s definitely going to be a challenge, but a little bit different of a challenge this year knowing that I can’t race to my full potential and be as aggressive as I want to be.”

How does that change the strategy when it comes to making the Daytona 500?

“For me, it’s going to be kind of ride around and hope other guys wreck and then be there at the end and try to complete every lap. I would prefer being aggressive and learning the car and trying to learn each and every lap.

"That’s what I try to do in Xfinity. It’s going to be a little different and that’s going to be a challenge for me to hang in the back and not make aggressive moves. But that’s kind of the cards that we have dealt right now.”