The 2023 season wasn’t a fruitful one for Stewart-Haas Racing. In a recent conversation with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, veteran crew chief Drew Blickensderfer shed light on what the Ford team needs to do to regain the momentum that was once flaunted by stalwarts like Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch, and Clint Bowyer.
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With time, even the best of drivers will age and their driving prowess will start accumulating rust. And that should be the point where the reins of the team must be passed on to the younger generation. Blickensderfer said, “They are not going to have veterans forever. You have to go through the cycle of young guys.”
He then drew the reference to Hendrick Motorsports when the Chevy team entrusted young speedsters like William Byron and Chase Elliott with the duty to live up to the expectations that drivers like Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson had set. “People looked at them during that time and thought like, man, what would happen? And all of a sudden William Byron turned into a superstar,” he added.
According to the crew chief for the #10 team, all that they need for a better 2024 season is consistency. He feels like the drivers that SHR has are extremely talented and can win races easily. It’s just the cars that they need to be faster.
“We didn’t have race cars last year that Kevin Harvick could win in and that, as a company, we need to fix,” admitted Blickensderfer. “Getting our race cars faster will not only help these young guys but help the whole company.”
🎙️@StewartHaasRcng crew chief Drew Blickensderfer said the organization as a whole needs to be better in 2024.
🗣️ "We didn't have race cars last year that Kevin Harvick could win in. And that as a company, we need to fix." pic.twitter.com/saOwGBKeKi
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) December 29, 2023
Nevertheless, he sounded quite confident about the upcoming season. Blickensderfer exclaimed, “Chase Briscoe, Ryan Preece, and Josh Berry are great race car drivers that can pick and win races. As a company, we have to perform better and that goes for all the Fords….” Lastly, he added, “Daytona, I’m sure, we’ll be pretty good!”
Indian automobile manufacturer renews deal with Stewart-Haas Racing
With its flagship driver, Harvick out of the scene and Aric Almirola away from Stewart-Haas Racing, 2024 calls for a radical step up in their game. Perhaps that would be possible with the priceless hours of effort that the team is putting in to find their lost mojo. On that note, Mahindra Automotive President & CEO Viren Popli firmly believes in their abilities.
Indian automobile manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra renewed its multi-year deal with SHR. The 2023 season wasn’t a great season for SHR as Harvick was the sole playoff contender. Even then, he finished 13th in the points standings and the other three drivers finished below 20th.
Despite all those struggles, Popli said, “I know they had a tough year, but I’m confident they’ll hopefully look better next year.” It’s perhaps safe to say that this partnership is a crucial one for the Ford team, especially after it lost two of its biggest sponsorships from Anheuser Busch and Smithfield Foods.
