Erik Jones To Drive JGR’s No. 20 In 2018
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. – A move many in the NASCAR world were expecting was confirmed on Tuesday when Joe Gibbs Racing announced Erik Jones would drive the No. 20 Toyota Camry in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2018.
Jones is in the midst of his rookie NASCAR Cup Series season with Furniture Row Racing, where he is driving the No. 77 Toyota. He’s scored one top-five and five top-10 finishes thus far. Jones sits 14th in the point standings and leads the Sunoco Rookie of the Year Standings.
Matt Kenseth, who currently pilots the No. 20 Toyota Camry for JGR, will not return to the organization following next year. Kenseth confirmed last week that didn’t expect to return to the team following the conclusion of the season.
“Matt (Kenseth) has been a tremendous asset to our organization over the past five seasons both on and off the track,” said Joe Gibbs, owner of Joe Gibbs Racing. “He’s been a great teammate and a great ambassador for our sponsors. We have a great deal of respect for him and we are working hard to get the 20 team into the playoffs to make a run for the championship. We have a great deal of confidence in his abilities to do just that.
“At the same time it’s exciting to have Erik back to run fulltime with us starting next season. When a number of circumstances made it clear over the past few weeks that a second year for the 77 car was probably not viable at this time for Erik, we all agreed that we wanted to keep him in the Toyota racing family and felt it was the right time to make this transition. He is an exciting driver that has already proven to have the ability to compete at the highest level of our sport. He is also shown to be a great representative to our partners and we believe he is at the beginning of a long and successful career.”
Jones made his Cup Series debut in 2015 filling in for the injured Kyle Busch at Kansas Speedway, where he led one lap before a mid-race accident derailed a strong finish in his first-career start.
In addition to his strong start in the Cup Series, Jones has made a name for himself with the success he has notched in both the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR XFINITY Series.
Making his NCWTS debut in 2013 at Martinsville Speedway, Jones wasted no time finding his way to victory lane, earning his first-career victory at Phoenix International Raceway in just his fifth series start. Following his solid start in the Truck Series, Jones competed full-time in the series in 2015. With three wins, 11 top-five finishes, 20 top-10 finishes, five poles and 925 laps led, Jones finished the 2015 season as the Sunoco Rookie of the Year and the youngest Truck Series champion in history at the age of 19 years, 5 months and 21 days.
Source :speedsport.com
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