Tony Stewart reflects on impact of Chase Briscoe's Darlington win amid SHR's final season

The 2024 Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, AKA “The Track Too Tough to Tame,” wound up being the setting for what could be the final joyous moment in the 16-season tenure of Stewart-Haas Racing. It was on that night in September, the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season finale, where Chase Briscoe took the checkered flag, clinching his spot in the postseason.

Briscoe’s win snapped a 73-race winless streak for SHR, which had announced in May it would cease operations after the season. SHR suddenly had a playoff driver in its final hurrah, a huge lift to an organization reeling from team co-owner Tony Stewart’s announcement.

“Obviously, for the building, the last couple years have been a huge struggle. And just trying to get a car in the winner’s circle again was tough,” Stewart said on “Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour” podcast this week. “But to see Chase get that done at Darlington and win a crown jewel race and get himself in the playoffs. That was a huge boost for the building.”

At one point not too long ago, SHR was one of NASCAR’s most successful teams. Stewart’s arrival in 2009 legitimized the organization. His capturing of the Cup Series championship in 2011 signaled they would be a player for years to come. Kevin Harvick joined the team in 2014, and he won his first career title that season. SHR has won 70 races in 16 seasons, with Stewart and Harvick leading the way.

Tony Stewart addresses backlash received after news of SHR closure

However, facing sponsorship and manufacturer-support challenges, Stewart made the tough decision to get out of NASCAR ownership, leaving more than 300 employees with their futures in doubt. Stewart ultimately felt the criticism he received online and on social media “was very unjust.”

“The bashing I got online and on social media was very unjust through the process,” Stewart said, via Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. “It’s easy to sit on your ass, on a chair, on your couch in your mom’s house and sit there and tell us how we’re doing it wrong. But nobody can seem to sit there and come in on Monday morning and tell us how to do it right.

“I feel like our group did a great job of taking care of our people the best that we could. And with the right intentions and with the attitude of our employees came first. And that’s what the focus has been this year. Making sure that we do everything to take care of our employees in a season that’s a transition year for everybody.”