Tony Stewart’s $250M-worth former ally’s lone Cup Series driver comes clean on his ‘hard-fought’ Miami weekend

Tony Stewart’s former Xfinity Series driver Cole Custer opened up on how Sunday’s (March 23) Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway went for him. Custer bagged a P28, marking his sixth finish of 21st or worst this season.

Currently 35th in drivers' standings with 56 points, Custer drives the No. 41 Ford Mustang Dark Horse with backing from Autodesk/HaasTooling.com. He is in his maiden season with Haas Factory Team, which debuted in this year's running of the annual Daytona 500.

Tony Stewart’s former partner at the now-defunct Stewart-Haas Racing, Gene Haas, who is worth $250 million (as per Celebrity Net Worth), started the team in 2025 with Custer as its first and only driver in the NASCAR Cup Series. Custer's father, Joe, happens to be the president of the Haas Factory Team.

Custer reflected on his day at the 1.5-mile, intermediate speedway in Homestead, Florida. He said (via Speedway Digest):

"Overall, it was a very hard fought-day, and there are definitely things to take from it. We'll keep working in the right direction to try and get us better at the next mile-and-a-half track we go to."

"I'm looking forward to Martinsville as it's a place where we've had some solid runs, so really excited for next weekend,” Custer added.

Next up for the 2023 Xfinity Series champion is the Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway. The 400-lap race has been scheduled for Sunday, March 30, and will be televised on Fox Sports 1 from 3 pm ET onwards. Fans can also listen to its live radio coverage on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Hendrick Motorsports ace calls out NASCAR’s Next-Gen car in light of Tony Stewart’s Cup Series metrics

Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy, won last Sunday’s Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway marking his first triumph of the season and 30th overall. Following his Miami sweep, the Elk Grove native sent a clear message.

If it weren’t for the Next Gen car, Larson thinks that he would have been at win number 50 by now. It’s worth noting that Tony Stewart retired from formal racing with 49 wins to his name, just one less than what Larson thinks he deserves.

“I think if we would still have the 2021 car, I would have about 50 Cup wins right now. I think switching to this car has limited us from winning,” Larson quipped in a candid statement (as quoted by motorcycle sports.net).

Tony Stewart was 44 when he bagged his 49th win during the 2016 Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway. Kyle Larson, on the other hand, turns 33 this year in July. If things go well, Larson might log his 50th win before retiring from full-time racing.