Though Stewart Haas Racing closing its doors permanently, this closure wasn’t entirely the end of their NASCAR legacy. Tony Stewart’s partner Gene Haas retained a Cup Series charter and embarked on a new journey with the Haas Factory Team. Apart from the Cup Series, they also retained their presence in the Xfinity Series, onboarding the likes of Sam Mayer and Sheldon Creed.

Once a championship-contending race team, it is now restricted to a single-car operation. SHR’s exit from NASCAR was bittersweet, with fans calling out Tony Stewart’s lack of attention and absence. But they cling to the hope that the Haas Factory Team would carry on the banner and continue the team’s legacy. Well, going by their latest social media posts, it suggests that they are starting fresh, branching out from their links to SHR.

All three HFT drivers, Cole Custer, Sam Mayer, and Sheldon Creed, featured in a brand-new video that kickstarts Haas Factory Team’s NASCAR story. The caption of the post shared on X read, “The future starts today; we are Haas Factory Team. @Haas_Automation X @ColeCuster @sheldoncreed X @sam_mayer_”

Despite the grand reveal, this was merely a rebranding of the old Stewart Haas Racing accounts on X and Instagram. They could’ve decided to start a new page altogether to build their own identity, but they chose to use the SHR community. Well, this gesture wasn’t taken well by the fans who felt that Tony Stewart and SHR’s legacy was disrespected by Gene Haas and HFT.

SHR fans livid after Haas Factory Team’s social media takeover

Tony Stewart’s sudden exit from NASCAR was indeed a shocker for ardent Stewart Haas Racing fans. A team that was a part of the Big 4 equation had to shut the shop and be replaced by a new entity. Most of the fans would’ve appreciated a mention of their roots; after all, the community that they are taking over wasn’t built alone by Gene Haas. Reacting to the Haas Factory Team social media post a heartbroken fan wrote, “💔 yall couldn’t have left SHRs account alone and made another?”

Unlike X and Instagram, HFT chose to delete all their posts from the 2024 season. This move was certainly odd; what was even more surprising was that they started to promote Kevin Harvick’s last ride with the #4 team from 2023. Not sure what was the agenda behind deleting their recent history and promoting their former star. Was it for social media clicks and impressions or just a revamp? This fan had his say. “It’s sorta funny that they deleted all of their 2024 posts on Facebook. Their most recent post is a Harvick Phoenix post.”

Although Gene Haas was already invested in NASCAR with Haas CNC Racing, the golden period came when Tony Stewart joined him to form SHR. With 70 Cup Series wins, a championship each by Stewart and Harvick put the team on the map. To rub salt in the wounds of these ardent SHR fans, they just took over their socials and renamed it the Haas Factory Team. “I think saying “the future starts here” standing on the corpse of the old team is a bit rough.”

SHR had been a dominant force in the last decade of NASCAR racing. Apart from the triumph of the #4 team in 2014, the partnership of Kevin Harvick and Rodney Childers added 37 race wins and five Championship 4 appearances. For some reason, they just couldn’t fire off with the turn of a new decade and the arrival of the Next Gen cars. And seeing their legacy now being overtaken by a new outfit was like a dagger to their hearts. “R.I.P Stewart-Hass Racing Forever Champions.”

Some of the fans even threatened to unfollow the social media account of the Haas Factory Team after their announcement. “Thanks for the reminder to unfollow.” Meanwhile, another user on X stated that with the way things are being handled at the team, they are going to land in a similar ditch as SHR. “Pretty stupid to use the same accounts as SHR, another sign of continued mismanagement.”

It is indeed hard to speculate or judge how well the Haas Factory Team will perform in 2025. But the technical alliance from RFK Racing is something they can build on and compete for a spot in the playoffs.