While Tony Stewart celebrated his birthday with his NHRA crew last weekend, the Cup Series side of Stewart-Haas Racing faces a major crisis. With Noah Gragson being the only driver from SHR to make it to the $1 million race owing to the fan vote, the team’s results at the All-Star Open revealed further grievances with on-track performance.

Apart from Kevin Harvick highlighting the lack of communication at SHR, their 2024 stint has yet to deliver a win for any of its four drivers. But as all four drivers continue to show signs of improvement with top fives and top tens, has Tony Stewart already called it quits on the once-front-running team?

Could an uncertain future be the primary source of SHR’s struggles with consistency?

Only a few weeks ago, Noah Gragson was celebrating a podium alongside the likes of Tyler Reddick and Brad Keselowski. For the other SHR drivers, such as Berry and Briscoe, results showed similar signs of improvement. That being said, the team has been facing major inconsistencies both on and off the track. A big reason behind this could be Tony Stewart’s diminishing involvement with the team’s management.

Speaking of which, Kevin Harvick throwing shade at Tony Stewart recently could hint at the veteran’s complete exit from the sport. Reflecting on the differences between Hendrick Motorsports and Stewart-Haas Racing’s structures, Kevin Harvick highlighted how he was pleasantly surprised by Rick Hendrick’s active involvement. Something has been missing from Gene Haas and Tony Stewart.

In a new upload, popular NASCAR YouTuber Eric Estepp shared his take on Harvick’s comments and what they mean for SHR’s future. He stated, “It is clear that things at Stewart-Haas Racing are not as structured as they need to be. Shoot, you’ve got the drivers taking things into their own hands, forming their own study groups.” According to Estepp, the current situation at SHR has nothing but the ‘structure’ that Harvick complimented Hendrick Motorsports for.

But that’s not all. Going over the lack of involvement from the SHR co-owners, Estepp added, “My takeaway after listening to Kevin Harvick there, is I think Tony Stewart is out. I think he’s already halfway out of the door, I think he sells whatever stake in NASCAR he has. He’s already sold off his Sprint Car series. I think he’s going to solely focus on drag-racing, his family, and good for him if that’s his prerogative.”

Ever since Tony Stewart and Leah Pruett announced their plans to start a family, the Cup Series veteran’s involvement in the category has gone down. After taking over NHRA duties from Pruett, it seems Smoke’s focus remains on drag racing and family. So even with Chase Briscoe holding a playoff spot and Noah Gragson and Josh Berry stepping up their game, the lack of leadership has left SHR with no clear path to follow.

Estepp also believes that SHR will likely not renew their deal with Ford owing to their recent performances. With the team already hinting at the sale of a few charters and buildings, Estepp believes Tony Stewart may be hanging up the responsibility of running SHR for good. With that being said, this prospect has left major drivers and crew members in major crisis over their future. However, Noah Gragson may be more fortunate than others.

Noah Gragson’s popularity in the All-Star Fan Vote could be his saving grace

As things stand, Noah Gragson is a free agent for next season. While he would like to stick with Stewart-Haas Racing longer, that opportunity may not come his way if the team sells a few charters. With Josh Berry yet to finish his two-season contract and Chase Briscoe being SHR’s only race-winning driver, Gragson and Preece could be more likely to get dropped.

That being said, Noah Gragson’s popularity in the All-Star fan vote could help negotiate a deal with other teams, as well as SHR. With Gragson’s popularity, any team that signs him can expect a fair return on their investment through sponsorship deals and other potential opportunities. So when Bob Pockrass asked Gragson if he would be using the All-Star vote result as a bargaining chip in the future, the 25-year-old couldn’t help but agree.

Noah Gragson shared, “It’s definitely something you can lean on for marketing. I mean Ty is a pretty well-known guy, Bubba is a pretty well-known guy, all these guys are really well-known guys and to go up against them, it means a lot. Got a great lot of support from the fans and could definitely use it for a little bit of leverage in the future.” That being said, Gragson had also expressed gratitude for fans who had shown up to support him at the All-Star Race.

For the #10 Mustang Darkhorse driver, having a “great” set of fans was key to his success and comeback. After his morale was shot down by the suspension last year, Gragson is hard at work trying to change that notion. But as SHR continues to show problems on and off the track, is it time for him to jump ship?