$90M NASCAR star Tony Stewart reunites with 4-time NHRA champion Matt Hagan

Tony Stewart was recently seen with four-time NHRA Funny Car World Champion Matt Hagan at Bradenton Motorsports Park during the 2025 PRO Superstar Shootout. Hagan is currently in his fourth season driving for Tony Stewart Racing.

Stewart, on the other hand, is in his second straight year driving for the Indiana-based race team. The $90 million ex-NASCAR driver (as per Celebrity Net Worth) is filling in for his wife Leah Pruett, who has recently become a mother and decided to sit out this year.

That makes Stewart teammates with Hagan. In a lighthearted mood, he embraced the Funny Car veteran. Tony Stewart Nitro on X (formerly Twitter) posted a picture of the moment on February 9 with the caption:

“Teammates 💪🏼”

Stewart is a three-time champion in the NASCAR Cup Series and retired from full-time racing after the 2016 season and shifted his focus to NHRA. But his ties with NASCAR remained intact given that he co-owned Stewart-Haas Racing, a now-defunct Cup Series team.

Following its closure, Stewart-Haas Racing sold off its charters to its fellow teams such as Front Row Motorsports and 23XI Racing. But Gene Haas, renowned automotive tycoon and Stewart’s partner at SHR, retained one of them and formed the Haas Factory Team. This year, the Haas Factory Team will field two cars in the Xfinity Series and one in the Cup Series.

The 2025 season kicks off officially with its stop at Daytona International Speedway next weekend. The 67th annual Daytona 500 will held at the iconic 2.5-mile racetrack and televised on FOX.

---

When Tony Stewart made a shocking decision about his NHRA team involving Matt Hagan

Last December, Tony Stewart released crew chief Dickie Venables who catapulted Matt Hagan to three of his four World Championships. He then appointed longtime assistant crew chief Mike Knudsen for the job.

Fans were a bit surprised when Tony Stewart let Venables go. But Stewart simply responded to the matter, saying,

“Many in the industry may question why the change, and all I can say, is as a team owner you are presented with difficult decisions,” Stewart said(via Autoweek).

Knudsen will be assisted by co-crew chief Phil Shuler. Shuler and Knudsen used to work together at Don Schumacher Racing (DSR).

“I’m really excited to take the next step in my career,” Knudsen said of his upcoming role. “Thank you to Dickie’s mentorship, I feel very prepared to step into the crew chief role. I couldn’t ask for a better situation. Tony is the best owner in the NHRA, and we have a championship-winning team that’s led by [car chief] Alex Conaway, also with Matt being a four-time championship-winning driver.”

Since the formation of Tony Stewart Racing, the team amassed 16 wins, 13 of which were brought by Matt Hagan. Its first Funny Car Championship came in 2023.