Following an abysmal 2023 campaign, Ford-associated NASCAR Cup Series team Stewart-Haas Racing is eyeing a comeback mission. Owing to the team’s inconsistency and its sub-par equipment, none of its four aces, including the 2014 Cup Series champion, Kevin Harvick succeeded in racking up a win. However, that’s all in the past as Tony Stewart still rests his faith in his drivers, inspiring them to give their best.

The team recently dropped a short clip of the boss man Stewart, on social media. In the video, he was seen motivating his drivers to scrape the barrel and break out of their shells while mentioning the core virtue SHR was built on.

Tony Stewart fires up his drivers with “passion,” delivering a brief note about the team’s fundamentals

In short, 2023 was nothing but a bad dream for SHR fans. While the team was able to capture its maiden Xfinity Series title with its #00 driver, Cole Custer delivering the team a breather, its Cup Series performance was so awful that the Ford stable couldn’t even bid goodbye to its champion, Harvick with a befitting farewell. In fact, all four of its star drivers failed to win while Harvick barely made it to the playoffs.

Following the dismal show, fans were down and needed an update about the team’s indecisive future. To add insult to injury, Aric Almirola shifted to Joe Gibbs Racing, thus needing a driver to occupy the seat in the #10, escalating the already dire situation further. The team roped in Noah Gragson and Josh Berry for the vacant #10 and #4 cars but fans still weren’t convinced about the team’s 2024 plans as pundits vouched that only a total overhaul starting from the management level could do the trick, getting the once prominent team back on track.

However, as we crossover to the new year, SHR boss, Stewart has rekindled the flames with passion, reassuring his faith in his drivers. He said, “Being passionate for me is just when you’re not at the shop and when you’re not at the track, when you’re still thinking about what these goals are that you want, that’s what the passion is. That’s what feeds you, that’s what motivates you, is that passion to be better, to accomplish the goal, and to always strive to be even when it’s a good day, you’re striving to figure out how can you be better the next time and that’s where that passion plays into.” 

“I absolutely think SHR has a history of having passionate racers, I mean, that’s what this company was built out of. It was racers that did whatever it took. There weren’t excuses, it was just literally about getting in, getting the job done, and that comes from all their backgrounds. That’s why the people that are in this building are in this building because they are passionate about what they do, they want the best for the company and they want to give us the best chance every week to succeed,” said the 52-year-old as he assured a new dawn for the team in 2024.

His statement was enough to understand that the team owner is definitely looking forward to continue the team’s legacy in the upcoming seasons.

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Stewart remains defiant in the face of adversity – Is it a comeback story in the making?

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Known as “Smoke” in the NASCAR world, 3-time Cup Series champion, Tony Stewart has been the embodiment of true grit and tenacity. Throughout his Cup Series career, Stewart has never let his failures or his past demons get to his head. However, the SHR co-owner couldn’t ignore his team’s miserable 2023 outing in NASCAR’s elite division.

With the world waking up to a new year, the veteran relayed his hopes, hinting at a stronger comeback while he uncovered the team’s vulnerability with the Next-Gen platform. He said, “You know I think the last couple of seasons, the performance is way off from what we expected and strive for, but again this building is full of racers and because of that it gives me hope to get the ship righted and get back on course.” 

“It’s not easy, it’s never easy but in the last 2 years dealing with a brand new car that we’ve never seen before, never worked on, has definitely caught us off guard but when you have a building full of racers like this, there’s no better group on your side than can figure this out and start going in that direction,” said the 52-year-old.

READ MORE: Tony Stewart Sends Out a Chilling Message on SHRs Relentlessness as They Prepare to Defend Their Pride

But does this translate to a better performance in 2024? Well, we can’t say that for sure, but Stewart’s words certainly do make a big difference, boosting the morality of his drivers and their fans.