Stewart-Haas Racing to field XFINITY team in 2017 – Nascar

Stewart-Haas Racing will field a full-time, single-car team in the NASCAR XFINITY Series in 2017, the organization announced Monday.

The driver and sponsor of the team will be announced before the end of the 2016 season, SHR said. The team will be run from SHR’s headquarters in Kannapolis, North Carolina. 

“In order to maintain the competitiveness that has earned SHR two championships since our debut in 2009, we needed an outlet to develop drivers and team personnel for the Sprint Cup Series,” said Greg Zipadelli, SHR vice president of competition. “People make the difference between winning and losing. An XFINITY Series team gives us added depth that will allow us to promote from within whenever necessary.”

SHR currently fields a four-car team at the Sprint Cup Series level, with cars driven by Tony Stewart , Kevin Harvick , Kurt Busch and Danica Patrick . Stewart, co-owner, will retire at the conclusion of this season, and Clint Bowyer already has been tabbed to replace him.

Since its inception in 2009, SHR has won 33 points races, two non-points races and 28 poles. SHR won its first Sprint Cup championship in 2011 with Stewart, and another in 2014 with Harvick.

Speaking on SIRIUS XM NASCAR Radio on Monday afternoon, Zipadelli stressed how an XFINITY team will be useful in the development of talent.

“It’s a great series for driver development,” Zipadelli said. “It’s a great series for crew development — from pit crews to crew chiefs to mechanics. It’s a great avenue to try things for our Cup car, whether it be parts, pieces, things of that nature.” 

More than anything, SHR simply was ready to make the move.

“An XFINITY Series team has always been something we would consider when the time was right, and that time is now,” said Stewart, who co-owns SHR with Gene Haas, founder of Haas Automation. “Staying successful in this sport means staying ahead of the curve, and having an XFINITY Series team provides an in-house driver development program and a new channel for personnel to make a positive impact with our race team.”

Haas agreed that this is natural step in the organization’s growth.

“This is a natural progression of SHR’s growth and one that allows us to be more self-sufficient,” Haas said. “If you look at all the teams that are successful in Sprint Cup, they have a direct connection to the XFINITY Series where drivers, engineers, mechanics and pit crew members are developed. We’re an established team with a strong infrastructure that is ready for this endeavor.”