In 2024, the woes of Stewart-Haas Racing have been well documented. Ever since the Gen 7 era began, the organization has struggled in terms of performance. They have not won a single race since 2022, and for a while, Kevin Harvick was the only one keeping them competitive. He even managed to get them into the Playoffs in his final season before retiring. However, the Tony Stewart-owned team has been a pale shadow since then.

Now, the situation has gotten so dire that Tony Stewart himself is leaving, and Haas is being rebranded to Haas Factory Racing. To make matters worse, the organization was downsizing heavily, from four Cup cars to one. On the bright side, they are still retaining their two Xfinity Series Fords. One is currently piloted by defending champion Cole Custer, and the other car has Riley Herbst behind the wheel.

The 25-year-old Herbst has been in the SHR camp since 2021, after moving from Joe Gibbs Racing. During that tenure, he picked up two career wins, at Las Vegas in 2023 and during the last race at Indianapolis. This just goes to show that Herbst is a pretty talented driver and just needs to hone his craft.

Did Tony Stewart have much influence on his career?

Lately, it has been in vogue for a NASCAR driver, either current or former, to own a racing team. Tony Stewart is right up there, alongside Dale Earnhardt Jr., Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson, and more. Out of them, Hamlin and Keselowski have been hugely successful. However, Riley Herbst revealed something very startling about the team and his team owner.

He said in the press conference, “To be quite frank with you, I never really saw Tony much. It was more about Kevin, Aric Almirola, and even Cole Custer, all those guys helping me. I would talk to Tony, little bit on the phone, but it was more about meetings with Zipadelli and Kevin. Telling me how to grow as a race car driver and how to become a better race car driver. Without them, I don’t think I’d be where I am today, by any means.”

In essence, he is suggesting that Tony Stewart had adopted a hands-off approach to managing his team. As such, the younger driver was forced to rely on his more experienced teammates. Fortunately, the likes of Kevin Harvick and other SHR drivers were very accommodating.

What next for Riley Herbst in the NASCAR scene?

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Currently, the 25-year-old is in a battle for his career in NASCAR. Fortunately, his win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway should be a massive confidence booster. Since his teammate Cole Custer is the defending champion, Herbst’s job is to be stronger. So after Indy, the onus is on him to keep up the momentum and keep up with Custer.

This weekend, the NASCAR fraternity has made landfall at Michigan International Speedway. Now, Herbst and Custer have already picked up wins, so they are comfortably in the Playoffs. If they can keep this up, they could easily advance to the Championship 4 in 2024.

In essence, the following races will likely be an extended audition for Cup and Xfinity teams. If all goes well for Riley Herbst, he could challenge for the championship very soon. Additionally, this is a chance for another top Xfinity Series team to try to recruit him.