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Chase Briscoe Reveals How He Blindsided Tony Stewart
Chase Briscoe Reveals How He Blindsided Tony Stewart
Chase Briscoe‘s life just did a 360, and he is definitely on cloud nine right now. But that was, evidently, not the case for the past few months. As Tony Stewart decided to shut Stewart-Haas Racing down, uncertainty about Briscoe’s future loomed large, and a ‘no owner’ situation was what he struggled with. In fact, his desperate situation even led him to scrounge Reddit forums to find answers regarding the hush-hush developments. But now it looks like things have certainly turned out for the better, with the driver even taking his team owner Tony Stewart by surprise!
How did the No. 14 Ford driver catch Tony Stewart off guard?
Tony Stewart‘s absence from the NASCAR tracks, the rumors spiraling about charters being sold, and the emptying seats of sponsors (catapulted by Kevin Harvick’s retirement) hinted that something was cooking behind the scenes. But despite the uncertainties, there was no clear answer. No one knew what was going on. Not even the team’s drivers who had time and again shown optimism. While many crew members had already reportedly started scouting for jobs even before the official closure news dropped, perhaps the most stranded were the team’s drivers. They had to be at SHR till 2024-end, make sure they were performing at a level that would attract new teams, while also dealing with the anxiety of being homeless come 2025.
Chase Briscoe’s situation was even more unique. With twins on the way, he couldn’t be seen slacking off! “I’m just trying to make sure that I’m not left out. I don’t have anything to fall back on. I’m not like some of the other people where they have family business or something like that. With a two-and-a-half-year-old and a wife and then twins on the way, I definitely can’t afford to be left out and not have anything,” the #14 driver had said, according to Autoweek.
But then Martin Truex Jr confirmed his retirement, giving the 29-year-old the sliver of hope he was looking for. Briscoe didn’t waste time and reached out to JGR representatives. And well, what do you know? Within a week, he had already signed a contract. And the most surprising part? Even his team owner didn’t expect this, which the driver revealed in a recent conversation.
Speaking with NASCAR, Chase Briscoe recalled the conversation he had with Stewart. He said, “So I had called him, and at the end of the conversation, he said, ‘If there’s anything I can ever do for you as far as calling people or anything, just don’t hesitate, let me know’. I said, ‘Well, you actually don’t have to. I signed something yesterday.’ And he goes, ‘Oh, the Front Row deal?’ And I said, ‘No, not the Front Row deal’. He said, ‘Oh, Wood Brothers?’ I said, ‘No, not Wood Brothers’. He said, ‘What is it then?’ I said, ‘I’m going to JGR to drive the 19‘.”
Briscoe actually did what Tony Stewart had done, only slightly differently. While Tony Stewart went from JGR to SHR, he jumped from SHR to JGR!
And for sure, for Briscoe, the road ahead looks exciting, with him taking the jump to one of the most esteemed teams in NASCAR. But with such a leap comes pressure and expectations. And it seems like JGR surely has high expectations of him and does the racer himself!
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A former Ferrari engineer has criticised the decision to bring in Lewis Hamilton and thinks the Brit’s presence will mean “a lot of potential for drama”.
At the age of 40, seven-time Formula 1 champion Hamilton will form a formidable driver partnership with Charles Leclerc. His big switch comes at the expense of Carlos Sainz, who has performed well for the Italian squad but who was axed so they had room for their blockbuster new signing.
But not everyone of a Ferrari persuasion is convinced that it will go well. Ernest Knoors, who spent many years as an engineer at Maranello, specialising in power units, worries that Hamilton’s presence could do more harm than good for a team that is finding its groove under Frederic Vasseur.
“A big name like Hamilton also brings a lot of politics and if politics within Ferrari are not managed well, then there is a lot of potential for drama,” he told Formule1.nl. “Hamilton has the tendency that if things do not work out, he turns his whole car upside down and starts experimenting.
“Ferrari believes very much in the big personalities and will follow him. But Hamilton is just someone you have to guide a little bit and not give the freedom to rebuild the whole car, because then it will go completely wrong. So I do not know if it is such a smart move, but of course it is nice for the sport.”
News of Hamilton’s planned move broke on February 1, coinciding with football’s Transfer Deadline Day. That the back pages of many newspapers were dominated by the decision of Hamilton to swap Mercedes for Ferrari was testament to the magnitude of the announcement.
Sainz was not surprised as he had been informed by his team of the plan ahead of it being made public. But the Spaniard responded well with two victories to date this season and five further appearances on the podium, on the way to what looks likely to be a fifth-placed finish in the championship – two spots and 54 points ahead of Hamilton.
Sainz has signed for Williams next year and, after several years of running at the front of the grid, will focus on his new challenge of helping restore one of the grid’s most historic teams to its former glory. But Knoors believes he should have been kept on by Ferrari instead.
The Dutchman added: “I see Lewis Hamilton’s arrival at Ferrari more as a PR move. With all due respect, Hamilton is not going to take that Ferrari from P6 to P1. He will get the most out of it, but what Ferrari has to do is make that car faster. And if you make that car faster, you can easily drive at the front with the current line-up.
“Besides, as a team you have to look further on the horizon. If Hamilton becomes champion in the coming years, he and Ferrari will become immortal. But if you want to build a team with talent for the next five years, are you going to build on Hamilton? No, because he will really be finished after two or three years. That is why I would have kept the very strong line-up that Ferrari has now.”
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Chase Elliott had a front-row seat for one of NASCAR’s most bizarre moments of the 2024 Cup Series season. At the start of Stage 2, the pace car dove onto pit road in front of Elliott; however, it was a tad too late. The pace car made contact with the sand barrels at the entry of pit road and caused a red flag for cleanup.
Initially, there was some speculation on the NBC Sports broadcast, even from the No. 9 team, that Elliott made contact with the pace car. Fortunately, the pace car didn’t slide across the No. 9 car’s nose, but it undoubtedly provided one of NASCAR’s craziest red flag moments in recent memory.
Below, you can listen to Elliott and the No. 9 team react to the pace car crashing into the sand barrels on pit road at Phoenix during Championship Weekend!
Reflecting on the recent retirement of 2017 NASCAR Cup Series champion Martin Truex Jr., Earnhardt didn’t mince words about the toll NASCAR takes on its drivers. Speaking candidly, the two-time Daytona 500 winner admitted that the pressure to perform every week left him feeling miserable for most of his racing career—a sentiment he believes is shared by many of his peers.
“Right or wrong, racing made me a miserable person 90% of the time,” Earnhardt confessed. “And him too. I mean, ask Kyle Busch, ask anybody—unless you’re winning, you’re not happy.”
For these elite drivers, the sport is a relentless grind. A podium finish might bring temporary relief, but anything short of victory is often a source of frustration. The immense effort poured into preparation and execution rarely feels like it pays off unless the checkered flag is theirs.
Earnhardt highlighted the mental toll of falling short, explaining how the relentless focus on winning can overshadow the joy of simply competing. Even a solid performance feels hollow compared to the euphoria of a win.
“Unless you’re winning, you’re not happy at all,” he said. “You’re okay with a good run, but for the most part, all the effort it takes just to run good—it doesn’t weigh out.”
For drivers, the stakes are sky-high every week. Sponsors, fans, and teams demand nothing less than excellence, leaving little room for error or personal satisfaction in anything less than a dominant performance.
Earnhardt also shared insights into his friendship with Martin Truex Jr., who recently announced his retirement. While the two often spend time hunting together during NASCAR’s off-season, Earnhardt noted that the stress of racing even creeps into their leisure activities.
“When I’m with him during hunting season, it’s always in the back of his mind,” Earnhardt said. “It’s that stressful part of the year when he’s as miserable as he’s going to be.”
Now, with Truex stepping away from the track, Earnhardt looks forward to seeing a lighter, happier version of his long-time friend. Without the weight of weekly competition hanging over him, Truex might finally be able to relax and enjoy the outdoor lifestyle he cherishes.
“It’ll be fun to see him loosen up,” Earnhardt added.
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