More to come from Stellantis after Truck Series return

Ram is coming back to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, but the parent company has no intention of stopping there.

“The Hemi is back,” Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis said during the truck's unveiling before hinting at more company announcements. “We figured we might as well go back to racing. We might as well get back to America’s motorsport, back to NASCAR. First, with the truck, and with the intention to go to Cup after that.”

Dodge last competed in the Cup Series in 2012, and did so after winning the championship with Roger Penske and Brad Keselowski. The company then pulled out of the sport, which included Ram leaving the Craftsman Truck Series, after a 17-year presence.

NASCAR currently has three manufacturers: Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota. Ram will be the fourth, at least in the Truck Series for the foreseeable future.

So, what needs to happen to get a Stellantis brand back in the Cup Series? It won’t be as quick and easy as Kuniskis stating the company intends to get there, something he acknowledged to the media during the Ram truck unveiling.

“I’m flying with no parachute here,” Kuniskis joked. “We don’t have a team. I got a truck. I got the intention. I’m writing a deal with NASCAR. I’m going to Daytona. How am I going to actually do that? What is my team going to be? How am I going to do it? I don’t know. We’re looking for a date to the prom right now. So, how am I going to get to Cup? That depends on how I’m going to get to [the Truck Series].

“However we get to the [Truck Series] is going to obviously weigh heavily on whether I have a path to Cup. It’s not [going] to be a one-hit wonder and go to Truck and not to Cup. That’s not our plan.”

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What is the timeline for NASCAR bringing in a manufacturer?

Multiple steps must occur after NASCAR and a manufacturer come together, including submitting the car body for approval. The timeline for buttoning everything up with NASCAR and being ready to race is at least 18 months.

“We’re excited they have an interest in the Cup Series,” said John Probst, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer.

Could the Dodge engine from the last time the company competed in NASCAR still be run? The short answer is yes.

“The core components of the block, the head, the manifold are all still relevant,” Probst said. “Our existing engine builders develop their engines every year, so there would be a gap there. There would be some development of that engine needed, but from the basis building blocks, they could start from that and do some catch-up development.”

Which Stellantis brand would be run in the Cup Series, though, remains to be determined. Ram is a truck brand and will be run in the Truck Series. Cup Series racing, of course, is done with cars. But as Kuniskis said, “We have cars in our company.”