Furniture Row Racing announced Sunday that NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Erik Jones will make the leap to the Sprint Cup Series in 2017, piloting the No. 77 Toyota Camry.
The Denver-based team announced that 5-hour Energy will sponsor Jones in 22 races next season. Team owner Barney Visser said the organization will secure a charter for the No. 77 car in 2017, guaranteeing Jones a starting position in every Sprint Cup Series race.
Jones won the 2015 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship driving for Kyle Busch Motorsports before moving to Joe Gibbs Racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this season. He has three wins this season and currently holds the top spot for the inaugural Xfinity Series Chase.
"I just can't believe this is really happening," Jones said. "We have been talking about Cup racing for a while, but to actually make the announcement is surreal. This is every young driver's dream, to be with a manufacturer like Toyota, an organization like Furniture Row with its successful technical alliance with Joe Gibbs Racing, and an incredible sponsor like 5-hour Energy who is so well known for promoting its racing program."
The team announced that 5-hour Energy will also sponsor Martin Truex, Jr. in two races next season, including the NASCAR All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
"Today has been a long time coming for Furniture Row Racing," said Visser. "Since we started our NASCAR journey 11 years ago it was our goal as a single-car team to reach a competitive level that would allow us to be in
Furniture Row Racing has three victories at NASCAR's highest level, starting with Regan Smith's victory in
Toyota Racing officials announced that the 20-year-old from Byron, Michigan is the first driver to utilize Toyota's development ladder from local racing through the NASCAR national ranks to reach the Sprint Cup Series.
"Erik is a true talent who has proven his abilities on the track as a champion and a race winner, but also off the track as an ambassador for Toyota, his
Jones has three career Cup series starts for Joe Gibbs Racing with a career-best finish of 12th at Texas Motor Speedway.