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Cole Custer details offseason prep for Haas Factory Team ahead of 2025 NASCAR season

JHby:Jonathan Howard•12/06/24•

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Cole Custer Cabo Wabo
Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports

Next season is a return to the NASCAR Cup Series for Cole Custer. He will be the only driver for the new Haas Factory Team. The No. 41 will adorn Custer’s Ford Mustang Dark Horse.

Cole Custer raced the 41 from 2020-2022 for Stewart-Haas Racing. During that time he did earn a win at Kentucky Speedway. Custer went back to the Xfinity Series and won a championship in 2023. He was runner-up in 2024.

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Clearly, Custer is a talented driver. He won five races in the last two years in the Xfinity Series with nine pole awards. But Haas Factory Team has a lot of challenges ahead.

Speaking to SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, the driver talked about the offseason prep going on at Haas. He seems optimistic about his return to the Cup Series.

“It’s been going great. I think everybody’s been working hard in the shop and getting things all transferred over and figuring everything out. It’s definitely a lot of work going on with restructuring and everything but it’s been really good,” Cole Custer said. “We have a great group and I’m looking forward to what we can do.”

Custer continued, speaking on Haas’ relationship with RFK Racing in 2025.

“I think it’s awesome having the alliance with RFK. I think obviously, they’ve built a great program over there with Chris and Brad and everybody. So, it’s really exciting to have that alliance. Having Aaron Kramer, my crew chief, come over who was working as an engineer on Chris’s car will be awesome. So, hopefully, we can really hit the ground running and build something we’re really proud of.”

Expectations for Cole Custer, Haas Factory Team

It is very hard to tell what Haas Factory Team will be in 2025. We know what we have seen with Stewart-Haas Racing. What we don’t know is, how much data they are keeping, will the new hires work out, and whether they can put a fast car on the track.

The alliance with RFK Racing is key. But Haas Factory Team will have to do something with that information. Will they become another Rick Ware Racing or be more like a single-car Front Row Motorsports? It’s hard to tell before we see the 41 on the track.

What we do know is what Cole Custer has done in his Cup Series career. His rookie season is maybe the best barometer for what Custer looks like in good, consistent equipment. But he’s grown a lot as a driver since then and matured a lot. Those last two seasons at SHR were in cars that didn’t meet standards. Plain and simple.

Custer is a driver who will probably take care of the car most weeks. I think he can help the program develop but nothing is guaranteed. If this car is just as good as the RFK cars, then the expectations are much different than if this is a bottom-level Stewart-Haas car on par with the last few seasons.

I do not expect this to be a fast car. But that could be a pessimistic take. Based on what we have seen from Stewart-Haas in the last few years, I’m not sure this team will be able to rise above a 25th-place finish in the points next season.