Whether it is the sport of Formula 1, IndyCar, or NASCAR, the presence of ‘pay drivers’—those who use their financial backing to secure a spot in top teams—is nothing new. However, Tony Stewart’s recent statement that he won’t be hiring any ‘pay drivers’ for his team might raise a few eyebrows.
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Yet, if you consider Stewart’s personal career path and how he climbed the ranks, his stance begins to make sense. He might not support the idea of such drivers representing his organization based on his own experience as a driver coming up the ranks.
This aspect was recently explored by NASCAR spotter, TJ Majors, during a discussion on a recent episode of the Door Bumper Clear podcast. His perspective shed further light on Stewart’s position on the ‘pay drivers’ issue.
Spotter highlights mentions why Tony Stewart, not hiring pay driver, makes sense
Offering his insight on Stewart’s remarks, Josh Berry’s Xfinity Series spotter weighed in on the discussion. Intriguingly, Stewart’s comments came around the time of the announcement of Berry becoming the driver of the #4 car for SHR starting from the next season.
TJ Majors stated, “You know he has his ways, and that’s what he likes. He has always been an old-school racer, and that’s how he worked his way up going through the ranks. He likes to see other people do the same thing. Obviously, there are… Drivers with money, but at this point we need those too.”
He added, “I think he has got a pretty good mix of things. But Tony’s a racer. He’s gonna like guys like Preece (Ryan)… Josh (Berry) is coming up the same way… We all probably would have known Tony would say something like that.”
Tony Stewart’s racing team has been struggling this season
Reflecting on the current state of Stewart-Haas Racing, the outlook appears bleak. Although we know that Josh Berry will be joining the team as a replacement for Kevin Harvick next season. The remainder of their roster still leaves much to be desired in terms of performance. As it stands, the team seems to be wrestling with a weakness in their driver lineup.
Earlier, racing analyst Larry McReynolds had spoken about the problems at SHR. He had mentioned how taking Harvick out of the equation showed that the team was nowhere in terms of competition with its other drivers. This is a highly concerning fact, considering that this is Harvick’s last season. However, if in any case, Berry is not able to perform at the same level that Harvick does now, the team would certainly hit rock bottom next year.
Moreover, the situation for Stewart and Gene Haas’s team has become increasingly challenging due to a recent wave of penalties. This unfortunate turn of events likely isn’t going to sit well with Haas, especially considering both his NASCAR and Formula 1 team have been struggling in the lower half of the field.
