Chase Briscoe is ready to take the SHR lead driver role after Harvick and Almirola’s departure

Chase Briscoe was the highest-finishing SHR driver in 2022 with P12.


Chase Briscoe is ready to take the SHR lead driver role after Harvick and Almirola’s departure

Aric Almirola, Chase Briscoe and Kevin Harvick

Stewart Hass Racing is getting ready for a generational transition in its driver’s line-up. Kevin Harvick, their most successful driver in recent history, has announced that 2023 will be his final season. Aric Almirola, the second oldest driver on the squad, postponed his retirement plan last year and is undecided on what to do in 2023, he is expected to follow Harvick out of the team this year.

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The No:4 driver has been the leader of SHR since co-owner Tony Stewart left the team, and after his departure, the task will fall into the shoulders of Almirola. The No:14 team driver Chase Briscoe is the next in line to take the No:1 spot after Almirola. SHR has recently signed a multiyear contract with Briscoe and expects him to one day lead the team.

Briscoe understands that he is expected to fill the void left by Harvick. During his contract extension announcement, he said, “Where we’re at as a company, for me still, Kevin Harvick is the guy. He’s who steers our ship. He’s the guy that when he talks, people listen, and, for me, I’ve just tried to watch as much as I can, knowing that Kevin’s not gonna be there one day,”.

And especially with Aric leaving in the next few years or whenever he does, I’m gonna be the guy that’s been there the longest, so, naturally, the leadership kind of falls on you to a certain extent. So I think how Kevin gets his points across and how I get my points across is probably two different ways, but you can still learn things from Kevin in how he approaches certain situations,” Chase Briscoe added.

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Chase Briscoe is set to go forward with his grinding mentality

Chase Briscoe
Chase Briscoe

During his press conference regarding the extension, Briscoe pointed out that he always races with a mentality that he is 10 laps behind the leaders. He is always ready to give his 100% for his team to prove that he won’t give up on them.

I feel like I always race with this mentality of every lap is making a difference, even if you’re 10 laps down because you have a mechanical issue. I always feel like I’m running 100 percent just to try to show my team that I’m not giving up,” Chase Briscoe said.

The contract extension and job security don’t change anything for Briscoe. He still remains the same and is hungry for more wins. He wants to top every also and every session in every race weekend.

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I don’t think my mentality changes now that I’m secured for years to come, so I don’t think it really changes anything for me. It maybe makes you a little less stressed at home, but, outside of that, I feel like you’re going to the racetrack every weekend to win and try to set the fastest lap every single lap, every single session, and things like that. I don’t think it will really change my outlook on anything as far as that goes,” Chase Briscoe added.

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