Tony Stewart’s departure from NASCAR last year closed the door on Stewart-Haas Racing and marked the end of an era for one of the sport’s most influential figures. Since stepping away, Stewart has immersed himself in the world of NHRA drag racing. Yet NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace recently suggested that Stewart’s exit was not simply a shift in competitive pursuits but a pointed response to where he believed the sport was heading.
Advertisement
Wallace did not mince words. “Every single NASCAR car owner does not like where NASCAR is headed. And we knew this is why Tony Stewart left the sport. We all know that. But there’s been a lot of teams that have gotten out of the sport because they can’t afford it.”
So, Wallace indicated that tensions have been simmering for years as operational costs ballooned and profitability tightened, especially for mid-tier teams, leading to many teams leaving the sport.
Wallace said Roger Penske had also expressed deep concern, noting that Penske sent a letter to Jim France outlining the structural flaws of the charter system. In Wallace’s telling, Penske argued that France was not sharing enough profits with the teams and suggested shifting to an evergreen charter model to stabilize ownership investment.
Stewart himself had hinted at his frustrations after he walked away. Following last year’s season finale, he joined Jason Stein on Cars and Culture and addressed the charter landscape directly. When asked for his view, Stewart did not bother with diplomatic phrasing.
“The charter agreements are a joke,” he said, making clear that the terms felt fundamentally inadequate and dismissive of teams’ long-term interests.
He pushed further, urging listeners to pay attention to subtle cues around the industry. He pointed to Rick Hendrick’s rare public admission of fatigue during negotiations. Stewart asked rhetorically whether anyone truly believed Hendrick built an empire by conceding out of exhaustion.
“Rick Hendrick’s never done that a day in his life,” he said, emphasizing that such a statement revealed much more than it appeared on the surface. For Stewart, it was a sign that the entire structure was deeply flawed.
Describing himself as a purist, someone who values racing’s roots and expects the sport’s business framework to respect the competitive ecosystem rather than burden it, when the dynamics shifted away from those principles, Stewart concluded it was no longer an arena he wanted to participate in.
Given everything that has unfolded since he stepped away, the antitrust suit, leaked messages, financial disputes, and widespread dissatisfaction among owners, Stewart’s stance appears even more prescient. And with NASCAR’s future still in flux, the odds of him returning anytime soon seem exceedingly slim.
