Getty Tony Stewart at Homestead.
After months of speculation, Stewart-Haas Racing co-owners Tony Stewart and Gene Haas announced on May 27 that they would be permanently closing the shop doors at the end of the 2024 NASCAR season. It was heartbreaking news for the drivers, more than 300 employees, and fans who have supported the organization since 2009.
The three-time Cup champion had undoubtedly shifted his focus from NASCAR to NHRA in recent years, including launching his own team and getting behind the wheel of cars that take just seconds to complete a race. On June 3 and less than a week after the closure announcement, Smoke made it clear where his priorities lie in a short video shared on X.
“Am I dreaming?” the narrator says at the start of the 15-second video that shows multiple shots of the NASCAR Hall of Famer in various areas at the track, including working on his car and walking toward it. “I’m living in my dream,” the voice states, as Stewart gets inside his car and receives a blown kiss from wife and fellow racer Leah Pruett before blasting down the track on a run.
Tony Stewart ‘Emotionally Invested and Re-Energized’ by NHRA
The video by Stewart is painful enough for fans of SHR. Interestingly, it comes on the heels of the May 31 broadcast of the NHRA New England Nationals, where the announcers shared their thoughts about the team owner/driver and talked about his passion for the sport.
”It, of course, has been a significant week of news for Tony Stewart, the announcement of Stewart-Haas Racing ceasing their operation at the end of the 2024 NASCAR campaign,” the announcer noted. “There are questions that remain on the NHRA side of things. Will this allow, maybe, an expansion for this team? Will it allow further concentration on the top fuel nitro funny car operations?
No one will ever question @TonyStewart‘s passion for motorsports. While he is moving on from @NASCAR after 2024, he is motivated and re-energized by @NHRA, according to the race broadcast over the weekend in New Hampshire.
“We do know one thing, Tony is, from our personal conversations interacting with him — this guy is fully, emotionally invested in this sport.”
“Yeah, there’s no question about that,” the co-announcer agreed. “He’s re-energized. He’s very motivated.”
Tony Stewart Left a Legacy at SHR
Tony Stewart being re-energized and living out his dream in NHRA has become a nightmare for a lot of folks at SHR. However, despite those raw emotions so close to the announcement of the organization’s demise, years from now his legacy will show he was a significant asset to the sport.
When he partnered with Haas to start the 2009 season, things changed. The first two years as SHR with Ryan Newman as a teammate, the pair recorded seven wins. A year later, Stewart won five times, including the championship.
Kevin Harvick joined the organization in 2014, won five races, and captured a second title. SHR has recorded an impressive 69 Cup wins and was, for years, considered one of the top three teams in NASCAR, along with Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing.
In 2023, Cole Custer won the organization’s first Xfinity Series championship.
After this season, there will be no more wins or championships under the Stewart-Haas Racing banner. Just memories and plenty of them. And Stewart deserves much of the credit.