The most immediate question – who would drive for the team – was cleared up last weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway when current Stewart-Haas Racing Xfinity Series driver Cole Custer was named driver of the No. 41 Cup team beginning next season.
The move wasn’t a surprise considering Custer – the reigning Xfinity Series champion – has previously driven for Haas in Cup and his father, Joe, will manage the HFT operation.
The younger Custer has won in all three NASCAR national series – Cup, Xfinity and Trucks – and certainly provides the new Cup program with a talent behind the wheel.
An uphill climb for a single-car team
Perhaps the more important question for HFT is can it do what other single-car operations have historically struggled at – consistently competing for wins?
Haas never won a Cup race in his first foray into the series with Haas CNC Racing. It wasn’t until after NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart was added as a co-owner of the rebranded SHR that the team took a big step forward in competitiveness and began to win races and championships.
Certainly, there is no reason to believe Haas has any intentions of returning to an “also ran” organization.
In fact, it would be counterproductive to his intentions of promoting his own companies on the car. Why invest millions into something that wouldn’t draw attention and be front and center of the sport’s media spotlight?
Joe Custer said his directive is to build a team that “can compete for wins a championship” and he has already secured several pieces to complete that puzzle.
Cole Custer, Stewart-Haas Racing, Haas Automation Ford Mustang
Photo by: Matthew T. Thacker / NKP / Motorsport Images
HFT has entered into a technical alliance in 2025 with RFK Racing, which has undergone a remarkable uptick in performance in the last two seasons. HFT will also continue its relationship with Ford Performance.
“Taking all the resources that we bring to the table and combining it with their success and the resources they have, we look forward to RFK and Haas Factory Team competing for wins and championships shoulder to shoulder,” Custer said.
“Along with Ford as a partner, we’re lacking no resources going into next year. People-wise, human capital, I’m happy to say we’re well on the way there to putting together the team capable of competing for wins.
“We’re focused on everything related to human capital, from the pit crew to…
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