Tony Stewart Closing His NASCAR Team After This Season

Tony Stewart, the three-time NASCAR Cup Series Champion, has announced that his NASCAR team, Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), will close after the 2024 season. Stewart, who owns the team with Gene Haas, shared the news as he campaigns in his first full season of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series with his TSR Nitro Dodge//Direct Connection Top Fuel Dragster team.

In a statement, Stewart and Haas explained their decision: “We have made the difficult decision to close Stewart-Haas Racing at the conclusion of the 2024 season. It is a decision that did not come easily, nor was it made quickly.”

The statement continued, “Racing is a labor-intensive, humbling sport. It requires unwavering commitment and vast resources, with a 365-day mindset to be better than everyone else. It’s part of what makes success so rewarding. But the commitment needed to extract maximum performance while providing sustainability is incredibly demanding, and we’ve reached a point in our respective personal and business lives where it’s time to pass the torch.”

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Legacy – 

Since its inception in 2009, Stewart-Haas Racing has been a prominent team in NASCAR, boasting numerous wins and championships. The team, which currently fields four Cup Series cars (Nos. 4, 10, 14, and 41) for drivers Josh Berry, Noah Gragson, Chase Briscoe, and Ryan Preece, has been a formidable competitor.

SHR was formed when Stewart joined forces with Gene Haas, who had been fielding cars under the Haas CNC Racing banner since 2002. The team quickly found success, with Stewart winning the 2009 NASCAR All-Star Race and securing the team’s first points-paying victory at Pocono Raceway the same year. In their inaugural season, Stewart scored four wins in the No. 14 Chevrolet.

The pinnacle of SHR’s achievements came in 2011 when Stewart, alongside crew chief Darian Grubb, won five of the ten NASCAR Playoff races, clinching the Cup Series championship. This victory marked SHR’s first championship, which was won in dramatic fashion, beating Carl Edwards in a tiebreaker.

In 2014, Kevin Harvick joined SHR and won the Cup championship in his first year with the team. Harvick and crew chief Rodney Childers formed a powerful duo, securing 37 of Harvick’s 60 career wins before his retirement after the 2023 season.

SHR also celebrated a significant victory in 2017 when Kurt Busch won the Daytona 500, giving Stewart his first “Great American Race” win as a team owner.

Rumors of Dodge’s Return to NASCAR – 

There have been longstanding rumors that Dodge might return to NASCAR, with Stewart-Haas Racing potentially playing a key role. However, with the announcement of SHR’s closure, the possibility of Dodge re-entering NASCAR seems unlikely in the near future.

Stewart’s NHRA Operations – 

Tony Stewart has been focusing on his NHRA endeavors, where he competes with his TSR Nitro Dodge//Direct Connection Top Fuel Dragster team. This shift to NHRA comes as Stewart steps away from NASCAR. Dodge will continue to sponsor TSR’s NHRA team, maintaining Stewart’s presence in motorsports.

As SHR continues in its final season, Stewart emphasized the team’s commitment to finishing strong: “We have tremendous respect and appreciation for all of our employees, and we will work diligently to assist them during this transition to find new opportunities beyond the 2024 race season.”