Stewart-Haas Racing is closing at the end of the 2024 Cup Series season, but co-owner Gene Haas is sticking around in NASCAR.
Haas announced on Thursday that he will run an organization called Haas Factory Team. This organization will have one Cup Series charter that guarantees entry into every race on the schedule. Haas Factory Team will also field two entries in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Joe Custer, chief operating officer of Haas F1 Team, will be the president of Haas Factory Team. The rebranded organization will operate out of the existing Stewart-Haas Racing shop in Kannapolis, North Carolina.
"My commitment to motorsports hasn't changed, just the scope of my involvement," Haas said in a press release. "Operating a four-car Cup Series team has become too arduous but, at the same time, I still need a platform to promote Haas Automation and grow HaasTooling.com.
"Maintaining my presence in Cup allows Haas Automation to compete at NASCAR's highest level, which is important to our customers and distributors. The Xfinity Series program provides a full weekend experience for our guests, and it delivers added depth and scale to our overall operation."
Haas did not make any announcements about drivers or team partners for its Cup car or the two Xfinity cars. The team will make this announcement closer to the 2025 season.
SHR had four charters for the past several seasons. The fate of two of them is now public. One charter will remain in Kannapolis under the Haas Factory Team banner.
The other charter is expected to go to Front Row Motorsports, which will expand to three entries next season. The team announced On May 29 that it had acquired a charter.
FRM did not specifically name SHR as the source of this charter, but the news came out the day after Tony Stewart and Haas announced they would shut down their NASCAR team.
The expectation is that two other existing Cup organizations will purchase the remaining two charters.
Trackhouse Racing is expected to purchase one charter as it aims to accommodate its four drivers -- Ross Chastain, Daniel Suarez, Zane Smith, and Shane van Gisbergen. 23XI Racing is expected to purchase the other charter after opening its new headquarters, Airspeed.
Neither Trackhouse Racing nor 23XI Racing has confirmed any reports about upcoming charter purchases.