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Tony Stewart's Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) had been in NASCAR for 16 years before it ended its operations after the 2024 season finale in Phoenix. Kevin Harvick recently reflected on the team's NASCAR exit.
SHR was started in 2002 by Gene Haas and Stewart joined as a driver and co-partner seven years later. The team won two Cup Series championships and 70 race wins. Harvick, who drove for SHR for 10 years and won the 2014 Cup Series championship, reacted to its closing in a recent episode of his "Happy Hour" podcast. He said:
"What a special place with the environment that came with Stewart-Haas Racing. It wasn’t like anywhere else. It was a racer’s mentality in everything that we did. And allowed me to win a championship and work with a lot of great people for a decade. Hard to believe that it is gone today."(42:50)
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Harvick also talked about the staff and drivers having to leave their offices and return equipment.
"Those guys aren’t even allowed back in the shop. They had to drop their computers off, they took their company vehicles and they'll never go back in the shop...It’s been hard to kind of take all that in and really realize that Stewart-Haas Racing is gone," he added (41:55).
Kevin Harvick also mentioned Stewart's speech at the team's last race and felt happy about Riley Herbst winning at Phoenix.
Three SHR drivers have signed with new teams. Chase Briscoe will replace Martin Truex Jr. at Joe Gibbs Racing. Noah Gragson will join Front Row Motorsports and Josh Berry will take over the No. 21 Ford at Wood Brothers Racing.
Co-owner Gene Haas will continue with a new team, the Haas Factory Team, and run one full-time Cup car in 2025 (Cole Custer, No. 41 Ford).
"More bitter than sweet" - Tony Stewart on SHR closing
Stewart-Haas Racing was one of the top 10 most successful teams in NASCAR with Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick. SHR's 105 wins include big races like the Daytona 500 and Coca-Cola 600.
Stewart decided to step away from NASCAR ownership this year due to issues with sponsorship and manufacturer support. He talked about his time as an owner on the Harvick Happy Hour podcast and said that his priorities shifted.
"I don't know that it's even bittersweet. It's more bitter than sweet, I feel like. It's a tough decision, but things in life change. Your priorities change, and variables outside of your control change as well," Stewart said (via Ford Authority).
Stewart and his wife, Leah Pruett, who is a 12-time NHRA Top Fuel winner, are expecting their first child, a baby boy, this month. The couple announced the news in June after Pruett took a break from racing this season.
