CONCORD, N.C. - The arrival of each new NASCAR season brings with it an adjustment period as race fans try to match new faces in new places in trying to keep up with the ever-revolving door of drivers and teams.
But when cars were wheeled onto the track at Bowman Gray Stadium last Sunday night, the driver standing next to each Hendrick Motorsports entry was all too familiar.
In fact, unprecedentedly so.
For the fifth straight season, Chase Elliott (No. 9 Chevrolet), Alex Bowman (No. 48 Chevrolet), Kyle Larson (No. 5 Chevrolet) and William Byron (No. 24 Chevrolet) will be behind the wheel of Rick Hendrick's Cup Series entries. It's the first time in the company's 41-year history that a four-driver lineup has remained unchanged for half a decade.
Stability. Familiarity. A continuously developing camaraderie helping to facilitate the exchange of information off the track and teamwork on it.
Those are the advantages of such longevity and Elliott said its felt among the drivers.
"I think it's a good thing across the board just to have some history with people and get to know them because it's not like you're best friends with these guys and you're hanging out away from the race track all the time, so, it takes a little longer to get to know them because a lot of your interaction is very brief and quick and we're typically working," Elliott said. "I think the cool thing about our group of drivers, at least right now, is that we're all pretty close in age, which I think is solid. From a longevity standpoint we hope we can be here for a long time, I'm sure. All of us."
To Elliott's point, the current driver's roster at Hendrick Motorsports combines to have the experience of a bunch of grizzled veterans, but their ages certainly don't reflect that. Between the four there are 35 full-time, Cup Series seasons and yet, Larson is the oldest at just 32. Neither Elliott nor Byron have even crested 30 just yet.
And yet, they've compiled a laundry list of success befitting most full careers. Together, current Hendrick Motorsports drivers have combined to win 69 points-paying races. They've made the playoffs in 28 of their 35 seasons and have combined for two titles (Elliott in 2020, Larson in 2021).
Even better, all four are coming off of solid finishes to the 2024 season with all of them finishing ninth or better in points. Byron led the way with his second-straight, third-place showing and Championship 4 berth.
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"I just think everyone does a really good job. We don't really have a weak link at Hendrick Motorsports right now," Byron said. "The 48 car was amazing in the playoffs and really all of us were good down the stretch. Just feel like our teams are all really strong and the same can't be said around the rest of the Cup garage. There's a lot of teams that have one or two good cars and then they have a couple teams that aren't as good. So, I just think that our team does a really good job and everyone works together."
While Byron and Elliott have spent their entire Cup Series careers at Hendrick Motorsports, Larson is the relative newbie, having only arrived in '21. Prior, he spent six-plus seasons at now-defunct Chip Ganassi Racing.
For him, that continued reliability among drivers has helped him settle in more quickly.
"Well, I've never been here with any other teammates so from my side of things, I think it's great. "I believe the longer you can be together, the more well-rounded everybody becomes working with each other and crew chiefs and drivers and all that. I feel like our debriefs are very productive. I feel like the way we work together on the race track is very productive. We all get along and we're all young too. So, yeah, I love the combination of teams and drivers here at Hendrick Motorsports and I've enjoyed working with them. Hopefully we can continue the collaboration, the teamwork, all of that and sharing a lot of success on the race track."
Like Larson, Bowman also spent the early part of his career elsewhere with both drivers making their full-time debuts in 2014. Elliott came next in 2016 with Byron arriving two years later. Bowman, Elliott and Byron have been teammates ever since and now, entering their eighth season together, will tie the combination of Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jimmie Johnson (2008-2015) as the longest-tenured trio of drivers in Hendrick Motorsports history.
"It's been a lot of fun. We all work together and bring different backgrounds and unique things to the table," Bowman said. "I think we do a good job together. Excited to continue that."
Of course, being teammates while driving separate teams within the same organization doesn't quite come with the same all-for-one, one-for-all mentality playing other major sports does. At times, it can be a delicate balance, trying to win while being a good teammate, trying to share information while still gaining an edge.
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Certainly, time builds rapport and with that comes nuance and better understanding of where the lines are. Elliott believes all of that has developed and will continue to do so among the four teams and that can only be beneficial for all.
"I just think we get along really well in a working environment and then we can all kind of go our different ways and do our own thing and for whatever reason, our group does a really good job of that right now," Elliott concluded. "I just think we all recognize, 'Hey, we're all into some different things here or there,' but when it's time to come together and work, we can work like we're best friends and be able to lay it out there and get the information out and talk about it and ask questions and everyone's open and honest. Ultimately, being able to put those things aside and have that type of working environment is a really big deal. And I think that it's been a really nice balance over the last four or five years."