Rumours have been flying around social media for months about Stewart-Haas Racing and its future.
The news is no longer a rumour.
SHR owners Tony Stewart and Gene Hass have announced that they will be closing their four car NASCAR operation at the end of the 2024 racing season.
SHR said, “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. Racing is a labour-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.”
They added, “we’re proud of all the iwns and championships we’ve earned since joining together in 2009, but even more special is the culture we built and the friendships we forged as we committed to a common cause — winning races and collecting trophies. That is the same commitment we made to our personnel, our partners and our fans coming into this year, and that commitment will remain through the season finale at Phoenix.”
They concluded, “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.”
In the Cup Series, SHR fields the number four car currently driven by Josh Berry, the number 10 car driven by Noah Gragson, the number 14 car driven by Chase Briscoe, and the number 41 car driven by Ryan Preece. SHR also fields two Xfinity Series car; the 00 car driven by Cole Custer and the 98 driven by Riley Herbst.
Gene Haas has owned the team since 2002. Tony Stewart joined Haas to form Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009 as an owner/driver.
The Hall of Fame driver has since retired from driving in the Cup Series. Smoke has since branched out into NHRA Racing with his wife Leah.
Since Stewart won the first race for SHR, the team has won a total of 69 wins in the Cup Series and 22 in the Xfinity Series.
There is no news on who will get the four charters owned by SHR; which has also had a great deal of rumour and speculation surrounding them.