"It was short and sweet" - Rodney Childers shares how Stewart-Haas Racing employees were told about the franchise shutting down

Stewart-Haas Racing crew chief Rodney Childers recently shed light on how co-owner Tony Stewart broke the news of the team shutting down to the drivers and the employees. Stewart delivered the news to nearly 300 SHR employees on Tuesday, May 28, that they had decided to shut down the Cup and the Xfinity operations at the end of the season.

Rodney Childers, crew chief of the #4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford team, recently appeared on DJD Reloaded and elaborated on how the team members learned about the news. Childers stated that the drivers were informed first, followed by the crew chiefs, and then the employees.

"They met with all the drivers first and then met with the crew chiefs second, and then went and met with the whole company. Basically it was short and sweet, told everybody that they were gonna have to shut it down at the end of the year and that they were sorry. We were just gonna have to move forward and try to get through the rest of the year the best we can. There's definitely not gonna be shortcuts the rest of the year."

Kevin Harvick's former long-time crew chief also explained that the Stewart-Haas Racing owners decided to make the announcement early in the season so that the employees could find jobs before the team closed shop at the end of the season.

Matt Weaver wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that Tony Stewart was very emotional when he delivered the news to his employees on Tuesday afternoon.

"Sources: Tony Stewart is currently at the Stewart-Haas Racing shop telling employees that the team is shuttering at the end of the season. He's very emotional," Weaver wrote.

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Rodney Childers discloses the reason behind Stewart-Haas Racing's shutdown

The #4 Stewart-Haas Racing crew chief elaborated that money was not the driving factor behind the decision. Childers claimed that the owners felt it was the right time to exit the sport.

"There's not a problem of us racing and money and that kind of thing the rest of the year. It's really just about getting out at the right time and what they felt was right for them," Childers said in the aforementioned interview.

Both Tony Stewart and Gene Haas confirmed in a joint statement that competing in the NASCAR Cup Series was "incredibly demanding" and they had reached a point where they decided to "pass the torch".

Gene Haas started the team in 2002 under the name Haas CNC Racing, with Tony Stewart joining forces in 2009 as a co-owner/driver. The team has won two Cup championships and has accumulated 69 race wins so far.