“We’re not at the top of the hill looking down anymore. We’re at the bottom of the hill looking up.” 2023 was a year of massive pressure for Stewart-Haas Racing. From going winless all season to losing Kevin Harvick and Aric Almirola, the team run by Tony Stewart was in dire need of changing direction. Coming into 2024, the new talent at SHR had a lot riding on their shoulders. But things haven’t gone their way so far.

After the 2024 Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum resulted in major heartbreak for SHR’s new drivers, Chase Briscoe once again emerges as the man who needs to lead the team that seems to have lost its stride. With all eyes on Tony Stewart as he prepares for the NHRA, can Josh Berry, Noah Gragson, and Ryan Preece keep up with Briscoe to help even the playing field?

Tony Stewart will have to look up at the hill for a tad bit longer

The Clash at the Coliseum was anything but a piece of cake for Stewart-Haas Racing, with only one driver making it into the top 10 after carving his way through the field. Looking at his previous poor outings, Ryan Preece was looking to start the 2024 season on a solid note by locking 12th place in final qualifying. Unfortunately, he failed to convert the decent qualifying position into a top 10, finishing 11th.

For him, a major grievance throughout the race was the car’s balance, and he felt long runs were a department that still needed work. NBC quoted him, “I felt like we were really good on restarts. But for the long runs, we struggled, and I feel like 11th was kind of a victory for us.” Despite what the #41 driver had to say, there was a possibility of converting the 12th-place qualifying spot to a solid top-5 finish, considering Chase Briscoe’s mega drive. Having said that, Preece’s performance was miles better than how Noah Gragson’s redemption race went down.

Gragson qualified 17th in final practice and looked solid at the start, but communication errors plagued much of the race for the #10 driver. These errors led to Gragson falling down by a few laps, meaning he technically finished only 147 of the 151 laps. He stated, “Our communication mishaps as a team going into the race with the modified schedule – we were misinformed on some stuff. Other than that, I’m proud of these guys and proud of the effort, thankful for the hard work, and just grateful to be back out here.” But perhaps the largest disappointment of them all came from the experienced camp of Josh Berry.

When the 33-year-old was teamed up with Kevin Harvick’s iconic crew chief, Rodney Childers, the expectations were higher than ever. And perhaps the pressure got the best of Berry, who failed to qualify for the Clash at the Coliseum feature race, owing to a lowly 25th-place finish in final practice.

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So, with both new faces at SHR failing to impress, it was up to Ryan Preece and Chase Briscoe to deliver some good news to Tony Stewart. And while Ryan Preece managed to wipe a little bit of the pain away, it was largely Briscoe’s mega comeback that drove Stewart-Haas Racing a step forward this race.

Chase Briscoe led by example at a time of crisis for Stewart-Haas Racing

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As final practice for the Clash at the Coliseum drew to a close, Chase Briscoe felt he’d failed to do a good enough job to qualify. With his mind already on the plane ride back home, it was a major shock when Briscoe made it through by the smallest of margins, qualifying 22nd. But what no one expected was the mega drive he would deliver to match Ryan Blaney’s performance, driving his #14 Ford Mustang from the back of the field to 7th.

After the race, Stewart-Haas Racing’s most experienced driver reflected, “It’s a good way to start the season with a little bit of confidence. It was going to be kind of a kick in the b*tt if we didn’t make the race. So it was nice to just make the race and then be able to go forward and pass cars, and a lot of good cars, too. This doesn’t really mean anything for the rest of the year. But for our confidence and from a team-building standpoint, I feel like it’s a really good start.”

So, with Chase Briscoe stepping up as a leader in a time of need for Stewart-Haas Racing, can the rest of the team turn their fortunes around before the Daytona 500?

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