Kasey Kahne will not return to Hendrick Motorsports in 2018

Kasey Kahne will not return to Hendrick Motorsports next season and continue driving its No. 5 Chevrolet, the team announced Monday.

Kahne had a contract through the 2018 season. Hendrick did not name a replacement driver.

Kahne’s status with the team has been in question all season due to underperformance and a lack of sponsorship. The 37-year-old failed to qualify for the Cup Series playoffs in 2015 and 2016, and before winning the Brickyard 400 on July 23, he had gone 102 races between victories.

Coinciding with Kahne’s dry spell, Farmers Insurance and Great Clips, announced earlier this season they would not remain as the primary sponsors of the No. 5 team past this season.

“Kasey has worked extremely hard,” team owner Rick Hendrick said. “He’s a tremendous teammate and person, and he has been totally dedicated to our program since day one. I’ve always believed that he’s a special talent, and I know he will thrive in the right situation. We will do everything we can to finish the season as strong as we can.”

Kahne joined Hendrick in 2012 and finished a career-best fourth in the Cup Series points standings in his first season with the organization. Six of Kahne’s 18-career victories came driving a Hendrick-owned car.

“I’d like to thank Rick and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports for their hard work and dedication, along with providing me a great opportunity and success over the last six years,” Kahne said. “We won six races together and I’m coming off of one of the biggest wins of my career at the Brickyard, which has given the (No.) 5 team a lot of momentum heading into the playoffs.”

Hendrick recently signed Chase Elliott and Jimmie Johnson to contract extensions to continue driving its No. 24 and No. 48 cars, respectively, and last month named Alex Bowman to replace the retiring Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2018 as driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet.

Hendrick said Monday it still plans to field four full-time Cup Series teams in 2018.

The two likeliest candidates to fill Kahne’s seat are William Byron and Matt Kenseth. Byron, 19, is a rookie in the Xfinity Series where he drives for a team co-owned by Earnhardt and Rick Hendrick. Kenseth, an 18-year veteran, is a free agent and leaving Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of the season.

Kahne joins a star-studded group of free agents that includes Kenseth and Kurt Busch, who won the 2017 Daytona 500. Both Kenseth and Busch are former Cup champions, but sponsorship uncertainty have each in limbo about their future plans.

“We still have a lot of racing left in 2017 and finishing strong is our top priority,” Kahne said. “I look forward to what the next chapter in my career holds.”