Getty Gene Haas
The Haas Factory Team announced on June 21 that the team will run three charters in the 2024 season, including one NASCAR Cup Series vehicle. The other two charters will run in the Xfinity Series.
Stewart-Haas Racing announced on May 28 that it would cease operations at the culmination of the 2024 season.
“Racing is a labor-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,” said co-owners Tony Stewart and Gene Haas in a joint statement.
At the time of Stewart-Haas Racing’s shuttering, neither Gene Haas nor Tony Stewart revealed any plans regarding either of their continued participation in NASCAR. Haas owns the Haas F1 Team, but it was previously unclear if he would leave NASCAR to focus completely on Formula 1.
“My commitment to motorsports hasn‘t changed, just the scope of my involvement. Operating a four-car Cup Series team has become too arduous but, at the same time, I still need a platform to promote Haas Automation and grow HaasTooling.com,” Haas said in a press release.
GettyStewart-Haas Racing
Haas Continuing to Own a NASCAR Team
“Maintaining my presence in the Cup allows Haas Automation to compete at NASCAR‘s highest level, which is important to our customers and distributors. The Xfinity Series program provides a full weekend experience for our guests, and it delivers added depth and scale to our overall operation,” said Haas in that same statement.
For Haas, it’s clear that there’s a strong financial impetus to continue his NASCAR presence, and there’s little wonder as to why. NASCAR teams recoup very little of the media rights revenue, the current charter agreement’s revenue distribution and rising costs to compete can leave owners strapped for cash.
The Haas Factory Team is operated by Gene Haas and will run on the Cup Series grid with one of Stewart-Haas Racing’s charters. The Xfinity Series will feature a two-car system.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cole Custer is the reigning Xfinity Series champion. His father, Joe Custer was an executive within SHR and will be the president of Haas Factory Team. The team will run out of the pre-existing Stewart-Haas Racing facility in North Carolina.
GettyGene Haas 2014
Haas Factory Team
Gene Haas has a long legacy in NASCAR, beginning in 2002 with Haas CNC Racing. In 2008, Haas joined forces with Tony Stewart to found Stewart-Haas Racing. Throughout 16 seasons, the team won 69 Cup Series races and two Cup championships.
In 2017, Stewart-Haas Racing debuted in the Xfinity Series. In total, the team has won 22 Xfinity Series races and won one championship.
The Haas Factory team will announce team sponsors and their driver lineup ahead of the 2025 season, although one could hazard a guess that Custer will be one of their Xfinity drivers.
The remaining SHR drivers include Chase Briscoe, Noah Gragson, Ryan Preece, Josh Berry, and Riley Herbst.