Chase Briscoe must be experiencing deja vu very strongly this season with Stewart-Haas Racing shutting operations at the end of the year. This isn’t the first time that the No. 14 driver has been associated with a team that’s closing shop for good. He was in a similar situation back in 2017 when he was a full-time driver for Brad Keselowski Racing in the Craftsman Truck Series.
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Shortly after he signed for the team, Keselowski decided to quit ownership to focus his time on racing. Although Briscoe was disappointed with how things had turned out, he held himself strong through the season and put up some telling performances. Notably, he won the season finale in Homestead-Miami. This not only put his name on the map but also gave the team a perfect send-off.
Briscoe recently spoke to the press in Homestead-Miami and reflected on that final race. He said, “That day in 2017 is certainly one I’ll never forget. Your first NASCAR win in any of the top-three series is a big deal, and that was one that I felt like was, obviously, going to be our last shot as a company to win a race since the team was shutting down after that. It’s definitely similar to what we’re going through now.”
Sending Stewart-Haas Racing off with a win will be a tough task for him. But he will not be judged if he fails to reach victory lane in Phoenix. He has already won a race this season and he did it in the toughest track of them all, the Darlington Raceway.
Did Sunday’s Homestead race feel the same as the 2017 finale for Briscoe?
Briscoe added when asked if he felt the same as he did seven years ago, “A little bit, just with being in this same position where the team’s going to cease to exist at the end of the year. It’s definitely reminiscent of that.”
“I would say just with how similar that feels and the emotions of the team and things like that, it’s going to be a little bit different since it’s not the very last race of the year, but it’s still one of the last races.” He ended up finishing the event in 12th place. Not bad for a team that has been highly inconsistent this season.
There is no pressure on him now, but that doesn’t mean he won’t fight for a win if he is in the position. Only two races remain in Stewart’s NASCAR career as a team owner. Another win would make it a happy exit for the three-time Cup Series champion. It will be interesting to see if Briscoe or any of the other Stewart-Haas Racing drivers can do that for him.
