Why Would Tony Stewart Take Over Haas CNC Racing?

by Matt Mercer, Special To Bench Racing With Steve and Charlie

I'm the new guy at Bench Racing and I'm supposed to be the younger perspective. I'm the guy behind The Catfish Show, which you can access through the links on the right.

April 24, 2008 2:09 pm CDT 8 Comments

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OK, so Marty Smith posted a story he has about Tony Stewart being in negotiations with Chevy teams, mentioning Haas CNC by name. The story has even been here earlier this week. So, would Tony really leave JGR for ownership of Haas? I think it is very likely. Haas is a satellite team of Hendrick Motorsports, of course. I would imagine if Tony takes over the team, he would be receiving much more assistance in that aspect. Then there is the option of him buying into the team, and driving for another Chevy team. Hello #5? Hello #33? Casey Mears hasn’t lit the world on fire, but the NASCAR world may explode if Stewart joins Jeff, Jimmie, and Junior. That would leave the #33, flush with funds from General Mills, and Stewart has a champion’s provisional to guarantee the team makes the field. Also, at RCR, he has a good relationship with Kevin Harvick.

It certainly would be intriguing if Tony becomes an owner. He would the highest-profile new owner in the series since Dale Earnhardt Inc. moved to Cup in 1998 with Steve Park. What is interesting to look at is how owning a team affected Dale Earnhardt’s performance from ’98 until 2001. He won just once in ’98, three times in ’99, and twice in ‘00. That’s a total of six wins, but taking a closer look, three were at Talladega, and one each at Daytona, Bristol, and Atlanta. Four of his six wins came at plate tracks, where he was the acknowledged master. Did owning those teams really affect his performance? Hard to say, but it’s worth mentioning. He finished seventh in ’98, eighth in ’99, and rebounded to finish second in ’00. Perhaps the biggest factor is the equipment, and depending on whom Tony is driving for: himself, Childress, or Hendrick, he may not add significantly to his win total.

What I’ve failed to mention is Gibbs in this scenario. How willing is Gibbs to let Tony go? Well, I think it depends on how well Joey Logano performs in the Nationwide Series this year. If Logano proves to be what he is hyped to be, he could very well find himself sitting in the #20 come Daytona in February 2009.

Photo credit: Icon Sports Media, Inc.

Filed under: Casey Mears, Dale Earnhardt, Haas CNC Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kevin Harvick, NASCAR, NASCAR Rumors, Nationwide Series, Sprint Cup Series, Tony Stewart

Tagged with: Chevy, Dale Earnhardt, DEI, Haas CNC Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, Kevin Harvick, Richard Childress Racing, Tony Stewart

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Comments

8 Responses to “Why Would Tony Stewart Take Over Haas CNC Racing?”

Marc on April 24th, 2008 4:03 pm

You’re forgetting another JGR piece of the puzzle, development driver Marc Davis.

He’s arguably at least even, if not ahead of Logano development wise.

He won 6 of 12 events for JGR at Hickory Motor Speedway in 2006 and a ninth place points finish there in 2007. He also competed in his first ARCA event, finishing fourth for veteran Bill Venturini last year.
Matt Mercer on April 24th, 2008 4:08 pm

Marc, I did forget Davis, but Logano won the Busch East title last year at the age of 17 and is slated to start in Nationwide at Dover. If my memory serves me correct, Davis also ran Busch East last year. But Logano’s got a huge leg up, and I think more talent.
Charlie Turner on April 24th, 2008 4:37 pm

Has anybody seen where Joe Gibbs Racing has declared an intention to start team #4, for sure? It has been assumed that Logano would form the basis of that team, but have either of the Gibbs stated that? Sponsorship is not as easy to come by as it was when Jack Roush had five-going-on-six or seven teams. You may be on to something Matt. Gibbs lets Stewart leave for where ever and Joey takes over one of the established rides.
Steve Wronkowicz on April 24th, 2008 7:48 pm

Welcome aboard Matt!

I still have a hard time believing that GM is so flush with cash that they would be willing to first buy out Stewart’s contract with JGR; then bankroll Stewart’s buy in to Haas CNC.

Being a owner/driver is a tough row to hoe, just go ask Robby or Boris or Bill or Ricky. What makes everyone think that Smoke could do it any better? And–would he be willing to move from one of the preeminent teams to a third rate–wanna be team? Hard for me to believe, even if he thought he could be the team’s savior.

i still don’t see him going anywhere–Logano or no Logano–Davis or no Davis.There is plenty of room for those guys at JGR II (aka HOF racing).
4ever3 on April 25th, 2008 12:04 am

Steve,
Why can’t Stewart own a team and drive for someone else? That is what Earnhardt did and wa spretty successful at it too. Not only that but imagine the technology and testing info that could be shared between the team he owns and the team he drives for. It worked for DEI and RCR, who became the top restrictor plate teams for a while.
Steve Wronkowicz on April 25th, 2008 6:25 am

When all is said and done; my prediction is Tony will sign a contract extension with JGR through 2013, for more money than can imagined. He may use that money to buy into another team, or he could do a Jeffy-like ownership deal with JGR for the fourth team. Or he could buy HOF.

Until proven otherwise, I’m sticking with my original premise.
Stewart Not Going Anywhere … Yet on April 25th, 2008 1:22 pm

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