In a reunion of sorts, Joey Gase will be driving the No. 52 Chevrolet for Jimmy Means Racing next weekend in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway.
Late Tuesday night (June 15), Gase took to Twitter to announce he would be returning to the team for the first time since 2017, with sponsorship from Gift of Life. Dating back to 2012, Gase was the primary driver of the No. 52 car, running part-time that year and in 2013, while tackling the full schedule between 2014 and 2017.
🚨🚨🚨 Happy to say I will be in the #52 again for @MeansRacing52 at @PoconoRaceway next weekend with @Donors1 ! pic.twitter.com/ZlNPvQlmfx
— Joey Gase Racing (@JoeyGaseRacing) June 16, 2021
After 14 races in the 2021 season, the No. 52 team sits 39th in owner points, just 25 points ahead of 41st (the top 40 are locked into every race held without qualifying). Gray Gaulding , the primary driver for Jimmy Means Racing, has driven the team to a best finish of 17th, coming at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, two weeks ago. He also failed to qualify at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Having Gase fill in for Gaulding at Pocono isn’t a permanent decision, and the Virginia native is expected to return to the car at Road America the following weekend.
Jimmy Means, owner of the No. 52 team, told Jaysk.com, “Gray offered to give up the seat if someone had funding; Gray is still our driver.”
In four Xfinity starts at Pocono, Gase has a best finish of 19th in 2018. In the inaugural Xfinity race at the Tricky Triangle, he finished a respectable 23rd for JMR.
