Preece is promoted by Stewart-Haas Racing to a full-time Cup ride in the No. 41. Ford

Ryan Preece will work for Stewart-Haas Racing full-time and operate the No. 41 Ford Mustang during the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season, the team announced on Wednesday.

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The 32-year-old Preece, who was most recently a backup driver for the team, will join the squad full-time to contend for the championship the next year. The 2014 Cup winner Kevin Harvick, returning drivers Aric Almirola and Chase Briscoe, and the Berlin, Connecticut native complete the team's lineup.

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Cole Custer, who has been driving the No. 41 for the past three seasons and is switching to the Xfinity Series to partner with Riley Herbst, gets replaced by Preece.

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Preece stated in a team announcement, "This is the opportunity I've been working for." "At the beginning of this year, nothing was assured, but I believed that if I put in the time, whether it was in a race car or a simulator, SHR was the place for me.

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I want to work for a company that was founded by racers for racers. I am aware that the current season has just ended and that most people are eager to take a break, but I cannot wait to begin.

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Custer finished in the top ten three times and won the pole at Kentucky Speedway in his rookie year of 2020.

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