CONCORD, N.C. -- Front Row Motorsports has bolstered its Cup Series lineup by signing Noah Gragson for 2025 and beyond.
The Cup Series team made the announcement Wednesday afternoon at the NASCAR Production Facility and confirmed this is a multi-year deal. Front Row Motorsports said that Gragson will drive one of the team's Ford Mustangs as he joins the returning Todd Gilliland in the three-car lineup.
Front Row Motorsports will name its third full-time driver at a later date. The team will also announce Gragson's crew chief, car number, and sponsors at a later date.
"We really just believe he's starting to scratch the potential of what he could do," team owner Bob Jenkins said during a sitdown with media members.
Gragson replaces Michael McDowell, who will move to Spire Motorsports on a multi-year deal starting with the 2025 season.
Gragson, a 13-time winner in the Xfinity Series, has made 59 starts at the Cup level with a variety of teams. He split the 2022 season between Beard Motorsports, Kaulig Racing, and Hendrick Motorsports. His best finish was fifth at Daytona.
The Las Vegas native made the full-time move to Cup in 2023 and joined the rebranded Legacy Motor Club. He made 21 starts for the team and only posted one top-15 finish.
Legacy Motor Club and NASCAR suspended Gragson in early August for liking a post on Instagram making light of George Floyd's death. He and Legacy Motor Club then mutually parted ways.
Gragson made his return to NASCAR this season after completing the mandatory sensitivity training. He joined Stewart-Haas Racing and took over the No. 10 Ford Mustang after Aric Almirola retired from full-time competition.
Gragson has capitalized on his return to Cup competition. He has posted one top-five finish and six top-10s in the No. 10, and he has improved his average finish from 28.2 to 18.3.
"We feel that this is a great opportunity and the perfect time to bring Noah to our organization," Jenkins said in a statement. "He has just the right amount of experience in the NASCAR Cup Series to breakout and become a winner for years to come.
"This season, Noah has started to get the finishes, and race consistently up front, which was expected from him. Joining our team, staying with Ford Performance, and welcoming him to our partners, we are only going to accelerate his opportunity to win races and compete in the playoffs. This is the driver that we want to help get us more wins."
As Gragson explained to AltDriver at Nashville Superspeedway, this is the result of learning that he doesn't need to give it 110% each week. Sometimes, 90% is the smarter move because it helps him avoid needless on-track incidents.
"I'm another year more mature, I'm another year older," Gragson said. "I don't know if wise is the right word for me, but I try to just listen and observe what others are telling me and just try to be better each and every day."
Gragson will have the opportunity to put this knowledge on display next season as he joins another Ford Performance-affiliated team, one that has showcased significant improvement in the Next Gen era.