Justin Allgaier, Sam Mayer, and John Hunter Nemechek were all denied a victory as Stewart-Haas Racing‘s lone Ford beat them all to pick up his first-ever Xfinity Series title. But what made it even sweeter was the sheer timing of the triumph. The #00 driver, Cole Custer’s championship-winning moment, came at a time when the SHR camp was low on morale, dispirited, and broken in confidence as all four of its drivers on the Cup side failed miserably.

Cole Custer saved SHR and Tony Stewart’s skin from total humiliation amidst an awful Cup Series campaign. However, this doesn’t mean it was all sunshine and rainbows in the Ford camp. In fact, Custer was demoted to the Xfinity Series after he failed to make it big in the elite faction, a move that back then wasn’t well received by the driver himself but paid off later on.

The heart-wrenching decision by Tony Stewart and Co.

In March 2018, Cole Custer assumed his position as Rick Ware Racing’s #51 car driver in his Cup Series debut at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The youngster then had the experience of driving for JR Motorsports in the Xfinity Series, and his Cup Series promotion looked like a step in the right direction. After finishing P25, he got into the RWR Ford for two more races that year, which saw similar results at Pocono and Richmond.

Further, Cole Custer got his shot at SHR when he came in as Daniel Suarez’s replacement in 2019 in the #41 car. This is where the driver got his first Cup top-ten finish at Phoenix. Not so long after, he scored his first win on the grand stage at Kentucky Speedway in 2020, passing Kevin Harvick and Ryan Blaney on the last lap.

Unfortunately, that win remains his only win in the faction. The driver who made it into the playoffs couldn’t repeat the same in his 2021 campaign with SHR, as inconsistency plagued the driver. Consequently, after a two-year absence, he returned to the Xfinity side of things, which he revealed was a “tough” task as well.

Speaking to Bob Pockrass, Cole Custer was asked about his demotion. He said, “I mean, you’re trying to focus on what you have at hand. I think obviously, you know, taking the step back down the Xfinity series that was, you know, at the time, maybe a little bit tough. But I think you just, you know, you have a great opportunity in front of you.

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“Like you have an opportunity to go win races and championships. And in any series of NASCAR like, that’s such a great opportunity to run for Tony Stewart and Gene Haas and go get the Chase trophies and championships. So I think that you can’t really be in a better spot there,” said the 26-year-old, elated to start a new page in 2024. 

“The sky is the limit”—Cole Custer reveals his psyche heading into 2024

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The final lap thriller at Phoenix Raceway to clinch the title from Allgaier was a treat for Ford fans. Cole Custer had to endure a final restart during overtime to win the race and finish ahead of Allgaier. Compared to his last three seasons in the Cup Series, his Xfinity triumph really ushered in a new ray of hope for the driver, team, and fans.

“Man, I can’t say enough about these guys. We started the year off, and it was a struggle, and we had to kind of dig deep with each other, really talk about how to get better, and to see how much this group has grown through the year,” said the driver, as per NASCAR. During the recent exclusive with Bob Pockrass, the 26-year-old California native revealed his mind, sharing his thoughts about the upcoming season and how he weighs it.

Cole Custer said, “There’s a lot more potential there. I think we can go out and try and win more races. With how we finished the season, I think the sky’s the limit. I think we have a really fast car with the Stewart-Hass Xfinity cars right now. We just gotta do the details right and keep the intensity to try and go win every weekend.”

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While Cole Custer has captured the throne, will he be able to repeat it once again and prove to the detractors that it was not just a fluke? For that, we’ll have to wait and watch.