Being present-minded and focusing on just the next race is the only goal or rather, option, for the four drivers in the Stewart-Haas Racing camp. With talks of an all-charter sale going around, the drivers are as clueless as the fans about where the team will be heading at the end of 2024. Noah Gragson, the driver of the #10 Ford Mustang, spoke to the press in North Wilkesboro under such distress.
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In a conversation with Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass, Gragson expressed how the current situation in the SHR camp could affect his future, claiming that he didn’t know what he was going to do tomorrow let alone next year.
His words went, “This time of the year keeps you up at night if you don’t have anything signed. I don’t have anything signed right now for next year and I don’t know the future.” He continued to express that the uncertainty keeps reminding him to refocus on just running the next race well enough. Being a tough sport as it is, Gragson doesn’t want such distractions hurdling his path.
With uncertainty over how many Cup teams, if any, Stewart-Haas Racing will operate next season, Chase Briscoe and Noah Gragson, during their top-20 NASCAR driver media availability, said they are awaiting word on 2025 plans. pic.twitter.com/0BwEHeGqR4
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) May 17, 2024
The biggest reasons behind his optimism are his business representatives and his performance crews. He threw light on them and reiterated that there wasn’t much else to do but keep the car afloat for now. He has been one of the better-performing drivers for SHR this season with 5 top-10 finishes. Should the team retain a charter or two, holding onto him will be a crucial move towards sustenance.
The four Mustangs in Stewart-Haas Racing plan to ride the storm together
In all the interviews that Chase Briscoe, Josh Berry, Ryan Preece, and Gragson have been in, they’ve stressed the importance of sticking together. The idea is that things could get worse if the team starts breaking from the inside. Gragson said, “If we can just keep doing what we’re doing as a group, that will create opportunities for us as individuals, no matter what happens.”
As the team’s unnamed foreman, Briscoe said, “There is a lot of uncertainty though. But that’s why it’s important to stay together because when you start cracking from the inside, that’s where things can go wrong from a performance standpoint.” Producing results on the race track is the only way towards salvation for the four drivers. Hopefully, they’ll be able to deliver that before it’s too late.
