A Year In Review: Stewart-Haas Racing
By John Harlow
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
What to expect in 2015:
Expect Harvick to continue to be bad fast. The pairing of Harvick and Childers has clicked from the moment they first tested in late 2013. Assuming there are no further pit crew issues Harvick should be in contention to repeat for a title in 2015. One would have to assume that Harvick will be getting his old crew back in 2015 which some might view as an issue. However, those guys performed well for Stewart over the final 10 races and will hopefully do the same with Harvick.
Patrick could be facing a make or break season. Sponsorship from Go Daddy expires at the end of 2015. She needs to improve her performance or this could be the car Kasey Kahne is driving in 2016. Patrick is a brand and a pretty good one at that. However marketing is only so valuable and if she doesn’t perform in 2015 SHR might decide to put someone in her ride that will.
Stewart’s 2015 will depend on three things. His physical health, his emotional health and Chad Johnston’s ability to find the feel that Stewart likes in a car. Stewart’s broken leg should finally be fully healed. There will be time between the accident that took Kevin Ward Jr.’s life and the start of the 2015 season and a season of notes and communication between Stewart and Johnston should help things improve in 2015. When he is on his game, Stewart is one of the greatest drivers ever to strap on a helmet. We haven’t seen that driver in 18 months but we all hope to see him again next season.
Kurt Busch could see a huge improvement with his pairing with crew chief Tony Gibson. Old school driver and crew chief could mean consistent finishes for the #41 car. The only obstacle could be the ongoing investigation looming. If anything comes out of that investigation there is no telling what NASCAR or SHR will do to Busch. Given what has gone on in other sporting leagues and the pressure that some are already putting on NASCAR, I can’t imagine it will be pretty if Busch is found to have actually done what he is accused of doing.