Tony Stewart poured concrete on a long-running rumor by announcing that Stewart-Haas Racing will be dissolved at the end of 2024. The news has got everyone scurrying around to try and figure out who the buyers for the team’s four charters will be. RFK Racing and JR Motorsports could very well be interested in the purchase if they weren’t a tad bit tight on the money.
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Responding to a fan’s tweet that hoped RFK Racing would purchase a charter from Stewart, Keselowski joked on his X handle that he was $30 million short of doing so. He wrote, “I’m 30M short at the moment. Friends say we should start a GoFundMe.” Replying to him, JR Motorsports CEO Kelley Earnhardt wrote, “Haha us too!”
Haha us too!
— Kelley Earnhardt (@EarnhardtKelley) May 28, 2024
The value of Cup Series charters has grown more than ten times since they were introduced in 2016. Reports suggest that Spire Motorsports spent $40 million purchasing a charter from Live Fast Motorsports last year. Spending such a high figure is not everyone’s cup of tea with the way the financial model works in NASCAR now.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., the owner of JR Motorsports, said in a recent episode on SiriusXM that he has been considering external financial assistance to help him invest in a Cup Series charter. However, it is unlikely that he will be one to write Stewart a check this silly season.
The front-runners to buy Tony Stewart’s charters at the end of 2024
As things stand, Front Row Motorsports is the favorite to buy at least one charter from Stewart-Haas Racing. The team’s General Manager Jerry Freeze confirmed the intent recently and could also be interested in purchasing Stewart’s race shop. 23XI Racing is another entity that could be gathering the required money right now. It recently inaugurated a highly advanced race shop, Airspeed, and could be looking to put the facility to maximum use.
Richard Childress Racing, Trackhouse Racing, and Legacy Motor Club are all involved in the talks, to varying degrees. Which team owner is daring enough to shelve out millions of dollars with the optimism of taking on the likes of Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports will be known soon.
