Cole Custer is in the midst of trying to repeat as NASCAR Xfinity Series champion all while trying to figure out what his future holds.
But his future may already be set.
Custer won three races last year, including the season finale at Phoenix Raceway to earn the NXS title. While he has yet to win in 2024, the No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford has been the mark of consistency.
In his fifth Xfinity season and second since being demoted from the NASCAR Cup Series, Custer currently leads the points by one marker over Chandler Smith. His average finish of 8.9 is nearly two positions better than last season (10.8).
That’s the best average finish among full-time drivers, and he also leads the series in top 10s with 12. Smith has the second most top 10s with 10.
Regardless of having no wins yet (he had one at this point last year), Custer prefers the start he’s had this year to last.
“Just because we have such a better notebook right now,” Custer told Frontstretch. “We definitely know we have a little bit to gain. We haven’t won yet, but we’ve been so consistent.
“We’ve been in the mix every single race. We just gotta keep knocking on the door and keep trying to find little ways to make ourselves better and we’ll be right there. We’ll get our wins soon.”
Custer and his team are making this strong push to be two-time NXS champions despite knowing SHR will close down at the end of the year. That was announced at the end of May.
“Yeah, it’s obviously not easy, because everybody’s trying to figure out their next deal,” Custer said. “But at the end of the day, I know we have great people. I know JT [crew chief Jonathan Toney] and all our guys are always committed, and they’re great about the details.
“I feel like overall on the Xfinity side, we’re quite a group that really gets stuff done. I feel like I’m really confident on what we can do the rest of the year.”
But is Custer even a free agent, or is he already spoken for? Will the guys at the No. 00 team really have to look for work, or will they be in the same building next year?
On June 20, a curveball was thrown into NASCAR Silly Season that could directly impact all of the aforementioned characters. SHR co-owner Gene Haas is staying in NASCAR, keeping one SHR charter in Cup and the two Xfinity teams.
Haas’ new outfit will be called Haas Factory Team, and it will use the shop that SHR currently uses, according to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass.
As soon as the news was announced, all eyes immediately turned to Custer. The 26-year-old has been with SHR in the three NASCAR national series since he drove the team’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series entry in 2014. Prior to that, he was sponsored by Haas Automation in the ARCA Menards Series East in 2013. He practically grew up with Haas in his life.
Haas didn’t say who any of its drivers will be next year, but Custer as one of them makes the most sense. When Frontstretch asked Custer about his ride hunt for 2025 last weekend, six days before the Haas news, it didn’t sound like he was necessarily picking up the phone every day to find a new team.
“There’s definitely stuff going on,” Custer said. “Obviously the driver market’s crazy right now. But at the end of the day, you try to focus as much as you can on the track. Because if you win races and do what you need to do on the track, things will open up.”
The bigger piece of the puzzle that hints at Custer driving for Haas next year is that current SHR COO Joe Custer, Cole’s father, was announced to be the Haas president. Prior to this news, Frontstretch asked Cole Custer if his dad would stay in racing with SHR closing down.
“It’s what he’s done for a really long time,” Cole Custer said. “I can’t speak for him, but I know this is a sport he’s always loved and put a lot into.”
So if the younger Custer is driving for Haas’ and his father’s team next year, the question becomes does he stay in Xfinity or move back up to Cup. Custer previously drove for SHR in Cup for a pretty forgettable three years, though he did win the to-date last race at Kentucky Speedway in 2020.
But Custer has loads of more experience now. And given that he now has Xfinity championship hardware, he is more than deserving of a second opportunity in Cup.
Haas could keep one of its current Cup drivers in the Cup ride, but those drivers are quickly being swept up by other teams. The Athletic‘s Jordan Bianchi reported Chase Briscoe is the leading candidate to drive the No. 19 at Joe Gibbs Racing next year. Door Bumper Clear cohost and spotter Freddie Kraft said that announcement could come as soon as next week.
Noah Gragson has been rumored to join Richard Childress Racing, should it acquire a third charter. Josh Berry‘s team could be absorbed into Front Row Motorsports, as it recently purchased a third charter.
That leaves Ryan Preece, who replaced Custer in the SHR No. 41 and has arguably been worse. The popular belief is that Tony Stewart wanted Preece in the No. 41 over Custer. So with Stewart no longer in the picture, Custer could get the nod. And if he does, it would make sense to keep him paired with Toney as his crew chief and move a lot of the No. 00 personnel up to Cup.
Let’s say Custer gets the Cup ride. Who fills the two NXS seats? Riley Herbst, the other current SHR Xfinity driver, could join Haas. But he may want to try his hand at Cup with a different team.
No manufacturer has been announced for Haas yet, but if it signs with Ford, it could be used as the pipeline for the Blue Oval’s development program. There isn’t another current Ford team I see getting entrusted with that.
So even though it’s the final year of SHR, Custer’s team isn’t racing like a bunch of lame ducks. And it could be because it’s already set for next year.
“We’re definitely really confident in what we have going on right now,” Custer said. “I think we definitely have a good shot at winning a championship this year. And I feel like for me, I’m driving probably the best I have.
“So it’s definitely a cool time to be a part of. I’m really thankful just to be a part of a team that can go win races every weekend and have a shot at that.”
Custer should soak in every moment of having cars like that the rest of the season, because that may not be the case next year. Going from a team with four Cup cars to a team with one means less information and less employees. Haas could certainly struggle next year.
Don’t forget that Haas was the sole owner of a Cup team before he and Stewart formed SHR. He had anywhere between one and two full-time cars in Cup from 2003-08 and only had one top-five finish to show for it. But given the parity of the Next Gen car era, I doubt the team will be as bad as then.
Even if Custer and Haas go Cup racing together next year and hit the ground running, there will still be a huge void with Stewart gone. You can’t put a figure on how valuable having the NASCAR Hall of Famer involved with SHR was. Custer certainly will miss him.
“Man, I think honestly the biggest thing was seeing [Stewart] at the track and getting any kind of pep talk before the race was so awesome,” Custer said. “Because he was our hero growing up. So it was so cool just to see him give you those words of encouragement before a race and everything. And just the nicest guy in the world that wants to see good for everybody. Definitely a great person to have around.”
No matter what he ends up doing, next year will be a season of change for Custer. Even if he still ends up with Haas, the team won’t look at all like the megateam SHR was when Custer was coming up through the ranks. That team will be gone, but Custer is one the side of not crying because it’s over but smiling because it happened.
“It’s huge,” Custer said. “I mean, it’s definitely really unfortunate. It’s sad for all the people there who are trying to find their next deal now. You just hope everybody lands on their feet, for sure.
“But I think it’s really to focus on what they accomplished, though, at the same time: winning two Cup championships, an Xfinity championship, all the races that they’ve won. It was a really, really cool run, at the end of the day. So focusing on the positives of what they’ve done in this sport is probably the biggest thing.”
About the author
Michael Massie
Michael Massie joined Frontstretch in 2017 and has served as the Content Director since 2020. Massie, a Richmond, Va., native, has covered NASCAR, IndyCar, SRX and the CARS Tour. Outside of motorsports, the Virginia Tech grad and Green Bay Packers minority owner can be seen cheering on his beloved Hokies and Packers.
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