Shrouded in rumors about the team closing down, Stewart-Haas Racing entered the 2024 season with little momentum. 2023 saw Kevin Harvick’s retirement tour end without a win while the other three teams failed to finish inside the Top-20 in points. For 2024, two new drivers were coming aboard what felt like a sinking ship. With the new faces and a new look, Stewart-Haas Racing did get off to a surprising start. However, that was not enough to keep the organization whole. On May 28th, Gene Haas and Tony Stewart announced Stewart-Haas Racing would cease to exist as currently constructed. For their final Season in Review, what grade will Stewart-Haas Racing receive for their 2024 efforts?
#4 – Josh Berry
2024 Stat Line:Â 36 Starts – 2 Top-5s, 4 Top-10s, 14 Top-20s, Avg Fin: 22.72
Crew Chief: Rodney Childers
Driver Points Ranking: 27; Owner Points Ranking: 27
Notable Results: Led SHR in laps led for the season; Initiated change to towing rules after being towed to the RV area at Kansas
Replacing one of the greats is never an easy task. Off the back of his strong runs in Hendrick equipment in 2023, Josh Berry was picked to replace Kevin Harvick in the 4 car. Helping him with his transition to fulltime Cup action was Rodney Childers, who remained as crew chief for the team. Out of the 3 rookies, expectations were held the highest for Josh Berry. Despite SHR’s decline, the 4 team managed to remain strong. While Kevin Harvick surely had plenty to do with that success, Childers certainly boosted the teams performance. Based on Berry’s 2023 outings and Childers, many thought Berry would be a shoe in for Rookie of the Year.
However, the 2024 season did not play out the way many thought it would. Not only would Josh Berry not win Rookie of the Year, he finished behind all of his SHR teammates in points. There were flashes of speed occasionally, specifically a 3rd at Darlington and his impressive drive at spring Richmond. However, the consistency never clicked. What was most concerning was Berry’s falloff from strong qualifying efforts. Berry managed to advance to the second round of qualifying 7 times. However, he only netted 4 Top-10s on the year. More concerning, his average drop from starting position to finish was 2.39 positions.
2024 Grade: C-
What killed the 4 team the most this season were the DNFs. In total, 10 times did Josh Berry find himself behind the wall to close out a race. Of course, one of those was the infamous Kansas incident when flat tires were the cause of Berry’s DNF.
2024 Hollywood Casino 400 @ Kansas, Josh Berry's full race onboard pic.twitter.com/uochmF8eNC
— Andrew (@Basso488) September 30, 2024
Speed did not seem to be the issue for Berry. In addition to his 7 Top-10 starting spots, Berry would start inside the Top-15 4 more times (14) than he finished there. Even at short tracks, where Berry was expected to shine the most, he disappointed. His average start on short tracks was 11.57 compared to his average finish of 16.29. Seemingly, the issues arose in the final stage. His average finish in Stage 1 and 2 are right around his qualifying position. Yet, his average finish drops significantly. Is that on the driver or the team? With Berry heading to Wood Brothers next season, maybe fans will get their answer based on his 2025 results.
#10 – Noah Gragson
2024 Stat Line:Â 36 Starts – 1 Top-5, 7 Top-10s, 23 Top-20s, Avg Fin: 19.56
Crew Chief: Drew Blickensderfer
Driver Points Ranking: 24; Owner Points Ranking: 24
Notable Results: 2 Top-10s in the first 3 races of the season; Won Fan Vote for the All-Star Race
Stewart-Haas Racing’s decision to bring in Noah Gragson was an interesting one. Aside from the off-track controversy that got him fired mid-season from Legacy Motor Club, his performance in 2023 left a lot to be desired. Many thought Gragson would battle Ty Gibbs closely for Rookie of the Year. Instead, Gragson struggled to finish in the Top-30 weekly. However, the talent surely did not wash away from the young driver during his switch from Xfinity to Cup. For SHR, it was a low risk, high reward move.
Early on, the gamble paid off. Noah Gragson picked up a Top-10 in the Daytona 500 and followed it up with an impressive run at Las Vegas. This was an early indication that Stewart-Haas Racing was going to run better in 2024 than they did the previous year. Gragson highlighted that perfectly, being a machine of Top-20s throughout the season. He would occasionally pop out a Top-10 here or there, but the 10 car mostly remained in the teens.
2024 Grade: B+
Noah Gragson receiving a B+ might seem too high. However, remember grades are also influenced by expectations heading into the season. Prior to the year, few people thought Gragson would do much in the 10 car. Outside of maybe Ryan Preece, he had the lowest expectations out of the SHR drivers. While never rising to a race-winning contender, Gragson demonstrated consistency and improvement from the prior year.
Another reason why Gragson nets himself a better grade is the change in perception for him. After his Legacy tenure, his on-track performances left many wondering if he would ever rise to being a Cup driver. That narrative got put to bed for now, as his performance in the 10 car proved he could hang in NASCAR’s top series. In fact, that success translated into a ride for 2025, as he was announced to be joining Front Row Motorsports. From undesirable to coveted in one season should give Gragson’s 2024 a successful rating.
#14 – Chase Briscoe
2024 Stat Line:Â 36 Starts – 1 Win, 3 Top-5s, 9 Top-10s, 19 Top-20s, Avg Fin: 18.81
Crew Chief: Richard Boswell
Driver Points Ranking: 14; Owner Points Ranking: 14
Notable Results: Won the Southern 500 to clinch playoff spot; Bounced back from DNF at Atlanta to advance to the Round of 12
2023 started out with promise for Chase Briscoe. However, that promise turned sour after a massive penalty ruined the rest of the season. For 2024, the question of unfulfilled potential was still front of mind for Briscoe. After a breakout Xfinity season in 2020, there has been high hopes for Indiana native. While there have been spurts of success, Briscoe’s Cup career has largely been a bit underwhelming. The downturn of Stewart-Haas Racing certainly has not aided his career. The rumors (and then realization) of the impending shutdown made Briscoe a prized driver in silly season though.
To start the season, Chase Briscoe was on pace to have his best season yet. At the All-Star break, Briscoe was in position to potentially point his way into the playoffs. Through the first 13 races, Briscoe averaged a 14.46 finish with 5 Top-10s. However, the following 12 races took a sharp decline. His average finish ballooned to 22 with only a single Top-10 (2nd at New Hampshire) to show for his efforts. His playoff contender status went up in smoke. Only a win at the Southern 500 could punch Briscoe’s ticket to the playoffs.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Last Win
Darlington has always been a place where Chase Briscoe has shined. Back in 2020, Briscoe outdueled Kyle Busch to pick up an emotional Xfinity Series win. During throwback weekend, Briscoe picked up his first Top-5 of the season. While no one was expecting a Chase Briscoe win that Sunday night, it cannot be completely unexpected that he ran well.
After pulling some strategy to get upfront in the closing laps, Chase Briscoe managed to grab the lead from Kyle Larson. From there, he had to replicate his 2020 performance and fend off Kyle Busch. Both drivers needed a win to make the playoffs. Ultimately, Busch was unable to find his way around Briscoe, leading to a SHR car making the playoffs in their final season.
In the end, this turned out to be SHR’s final win as a team. Based on the current lineup of the organization, it was fitting that Briscoe (in the 14) picked up that win. Plus, that win was not squandered in the first round of the playoffs. After a DNF at Atlanta, the 14 team managed to battle back and point their way through to the Round of 12.
2024 Grade: A-
If you remove the stretch from the All-Star Race through summer Daytona, 2024 would have been Chase Briscoe’s best Cup season. Through the first third of the year, Briscoe was on pace for 15 Top-10s. The same issues that plagued his post-throwback Darlington 2023 season arrived this year as well. Whatever the 14 team managed to do early in the year, they were unable to replicate that through the summer. Honestly, it probably does come down to the shutting down of SHR, with many employees seeking (and finding) employment elsewhere.
However, a credit has to be paid to the Chase Briscoe, Richard Boswell, and the entire 14 team. Winning the Southern 500 could have been a highlight enough. Nobody expected much from the 14 team in the playoffs, so after their DNF at Atlanta, it would have been easy to pack it in. Instead, the team pulled out back-to-back Top-10s at Watkins Glen and Bristol to advance. It is a commendable performance that should be acknowledged.
Now, Chase Briscoe’s expectations are high as he steps into the 19 car for Joe Gibbs Racing.
#41 – Ryan Preece
2024 Stat Line:Â 36 Starts – 1 Top-5, 12 Top-10s, 17 Top-20s, Avg Fin: 20.89
Crew Chief: Chad Johnston
Driver Points Ranking: 26; Owner Points Ranking: 26
Notable Results: Scored only Top-5 during Nashville’s overtime palooza; Selected to drive RFK Racing’s third fulltime entry
Ryan Preece’s first season with Stewart-Haas Racing was underwhelming. After Tony Stewart seemingly force Gene Haas into subbing Preece in, those efforts were rewarded with essentially the same numbers Cole Custer put up. Honestly, it was eerie how similar Preece’s 2023 was to Custer’s 2022. For the 2024 season, the hope was that Preece could improve and give some life into the 41 team. After all, the man did race the weekend after flipping violently at Daytona.
By the numbers, 2024 was a career season for Preece. He set bests in Top-10s and lead lap finishes, with only a .1 increase to his average finish. While the numbers were still not impressive, they do show slight improvement from one season to the next. Plus, he finished the year with some momentum. Preece picked up 3 of his 5 Top-10s on the season as well as finishing inside the Top-20 in 6 of the final 10 races.
2024 Grade: C-
Despite the career season, Ryan Preece barely gets that passing grade. Honestly, the better than expected result was due to how well Preece finished the season off. If that 10 race sample could be extrapolated into a full 36 race season, Preece would not be so maligned for getting the third RFK ride for 2025.
2025 Outlook (Cole Custer, #41 Haas Factory Team)
It will be a single car team next for the newly renamed/reformed Haas Factory Team. At the moment of this writing, the decision for two of the sold charters is still being determined by NASCAR. However, one Cup team from Haas will be competing next season. Cole Custer will return to Cup after two successful seasons in Xfinity. Haas Factory Team will have a technical alliance with RFK Racing, joining Rick Ware Racing in that endeavor.
When considering what to expect from Cole Custer next season, the ceiling cannot be too high. Even with the RFK alliance, expectations cannot be much higher than where they laid heading into this season. Prior to Tony Stewart’s partial ownership, Haas never made much noise in the Cup Series. Outside of superspeedways and (maybe) certain short tracks, Cole Custer seems set to be a driver fighting to get into the 20s.
Stewart-Haas Racing 2024 Grade:Â C
After the failure that was 2023, 2024 offered up some positives before Stewart-Haas Racing ceases to exist. Overall, 3 of the 4 cars ran better than many expected heading into the season. Josh Berry might have been the biggest disappointment, but that could have been the fault of expecting too much from a rookie driver.
It is sad to see Stewart-Haas Racing closing down. Even as their performance withered, the team had been a staple of the Cup Series over the past decade. Now, Haas Factory Team will run essentially as a shell of the former team. Each driver from the 2024 season has a Cup ride of next year, which is pleasant to see.
For other 2024 Season in Review articles, click the link(s) below:
Robert Cwick: Team Penske, JTG-Daugherty
Griffin Fuller: 23XI Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, RFK Racing
Daniel Smith (statistical reviews): Team Penske/Wood Brothers, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Trackhouse Racing/Richard Childress Racing
