Penske Racing's 6 Best Potential Replacements for AJ Allmendinger in 2013

AJ Allmendinger's 2012 season is likely over thanks to Tuesday's announcement that he had been suspended indefinitely for violating the sport's substance abuse policy.

Team owner Roger Penske has some big decisions to make as far as who will fill the No. 22 seat for the remainder of 2012 and beyond. Penske has already confirmed that Sam Hornish Jr. will be in the car this weekend in Indianapolis and next weekend in Pocono (via Yahoo! Sports).

But, beyond that is anyone's guess. Allmendinger's only way back now is through NASCAR's Road to Recovery Program, which is so stringent—and rightly so—that it could take a year or more for Allmendinger to be cleared to return to the track and Penske may not be keen to wait around.

Of course, this is all hypothetical. But, if Penske does replace Allmendinger for 2013, here are six guys that could/should/might be behind the wheel of the Shell/Pennzoil Ford when we get to Daytona next February.

Sam Hornish Jr.

Sam Hornish Jr. is the guy with the inside track to this seat. Already employed by Penske Racing, he has filled in for Allmendinger in the two races since his suspension and has the seat for the next two races.

Hornish Jr.'s first foray into the Sprint Cup Series was a complete disaster. He made the jump straight from IndyCar to NASCAR's premiere series in 2007 and piled up dismal performances for three seasons before his team was shut down.

But driving for Penske in the Nationwide Series has revitalized Hornish Jr.'s career. He earned his first NASCAR win in a Nationwide race last season in Phoenix and currently sits fourth in the Nationwide points standings.

Hornish Jr. and Penske have both stated that their ultimate goal is for Hornish Jr. to be back in a full-time Cup ride (via Sporting News). Unfortunate as this situation is, it could be a blessing for Hornish Jr. and give him a second chance to show that he is able to succeed at NASCAR's highest level.

Joey Logano

Joey Logano's Sprint Cup career had been going nowhere fast entering 2012.

Save for a victory as a rookie in 2009 at New Hampshire—which most dismissed because it came thanks to fuel mileage strategy in a rain-shortened race—the kid that Mark Martin now-famously said would put in a Cup car at 15 years old has failed to live up to the immense hype that surrounded him upon his arrival to Sprint Cup.

Rumors have swirled around Logano's status with Joe Gibbs Racing all season long, even after a summer hot streak netted his second career victory at Pocono. Add to that the rumors that Matt Kenseth is taking his ride at JGR and a move could definitely be in the works for the 22-year-old.

Logano has had to deal his entire career with the pressure of piloting the same car that Tony Stewart had so much success with for a decade. A fresh start in a new ride could be what Logano needs to get his career on track, especially if Kenseth winds up at JGR.

A shot in the No. 22 would be just that.

Brian Vickers

Almost no one has turned more heads in the Sprint Cup Series this year than Brian Vickers.

After Red Bull Racing closed its doors at the end of 2011 and left him without a ride, Vickers has been running a partial schedule for Michael Waltrip Racing while looking for his third full-time Cup opportunity.

In four starts for MWR in 2012, Vickers has a pair of top-five finishes and has finished no lower than 18th.

The 2003 Nationwide Series champion has shown that he has what it takes to make it at the Cup level. He has two career wins to his name and a Chase appearance in 2010 with Red Bull.

If Roger Penske decides to bring in someone from outside his organization for the No. 22 ride in 2013, Vickers has the talent and potential to place himself firmly towards the top of the list.

Trevor Bayne

The day after the 2011 Daytona 500, Trevor Bayne's name was on everyone's lips as the next big star coming down the pipeline.

Bayne's career, though boosted by his Cinderella victory, has been hampered by sponsorship troubles and a freak bout with Lyme disease that kept him out of his Nationwide car for two months of the 2011 season.

Bayne and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. are clearly looked at as the future of Roush Fenway Racing, where both are under contract. But Bayne was in the top-five in points early in 2012, but forced to pull out because of lack of sponsorship.

Being so young and having such promising talent, there's a chance that Bayne could tire of waiting for an opportunity to present itself with RFR. If he could somehow slip out of his contract with Roush, Penske Racing would be smart to consider giving this clean-cut 21-year-old a shot.

Ryan Newman

This one could be interesting.

Sports has seen athletes leave a team, only to wind up back there again before their career was over. In NASCAR, it's a rarity, but not unheard of (anyone remember what happened the second time Dale Earnhardt and Richard Childress hooked up?).

Not comparing Ryan Newman to Dale Earnhardt, but the fact remains that it has been done. Newman had a very successful run with Penske Racing from 2000-08. In 2002, he beat some guy named Jimmie Johnson for Rookie of the Year and earned Roger Penske his first—and so far, only—Daytona 500 victory in 2008.

Newman has no contract past 2012 with Stewart-Haas Racing, where he has two victories since 2009 and has made the Chase in two of his three seasons with the team.

Newman's No. 39 team just learned that the U.S. Army will be pulling their sponsorship at season's end and the future of that car without more stable sponsorship is up in the air.

Newman didn't appear to burn any bridges when he left Penske after 2008. If sponsorship isn't found at Stewart-Haas and Newman departs the team, he would give Penske a proven driver that has 15 career wins and has made the Chase four times.

David Ragan

Just as Joey Logano had to deal with following Tony Stewart at Joe Gibbs Racing, David Ragan happened to be the poor soul tasked with replacing Mark Martin in Roush Fenway's iconic No. 6 after Martin's retirement.

Ragan showed flashes along the way that success was near, just narrowly missing the Chase in 2008 and 2011. But, more often than not, he underachieved in the No. 6 car and was never a contender on a consistent basis.

When sponsor UPS announced they were leaving after 2011, even a breakthrough victory in July at Daytona wasn't enough to save Ragan's job and he was let go when the No. 6 team was disbanded.

Ragan caught on with Front Row Motorsports for 2012, but has barely been able to show his talents in equipment that ranks just a rung above "start and park" on the competitive scale.

One would figure the former Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year would be chomping at the bit to get an opportunity should the No. 22 ride come open at Penske Racing.