Gene Haas first forayed into the NASCAR Cup Series as Haas CNC Racing in 2002. Then in 2009, shifted into a combination of efforts with Tony Stewart, as the duo formed Stewart-Haas Racing. 2 championships and 80 wins later, the team folded in 2024, and Haas shifted again to a new team, HFT. However, he has never shifted his OEM \u2013 something that seems imminent now. In 2025, HFT entered into a technical alliance with RFK Racing, a top-notch Ford organization in the Cup Series. Joe Custer had enthusiastically said last year, \u201cAlong with Ford as a partner, we\u2019re lacking no resources going into next year. People-wise, human capital\u2026we\u2019ve got the relationship, we\u2019ve got the OEM.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to a NASCAR rumor, however, the same OEM might not be there for long. Cole Custer has been on a losing streak on HFT\u2019s Cup side, catching only 1 top five and 2 top tens. In last weekend\u2019s Southern 500 race in Darlington, Custer registered a lackluster 24th-place finish after struggling with tight-handling throughout the race. His misfortune may be the reason behind the rumor. In a recent episode of \u2018Door, Bumper, Clear\u2019, Freddie Kraft shared his insider information:<\/a> \u201cI heard some interesting stuff\u2026SHR is potentially going to merge with Legacy and some sort. I heard that deal\u2019s out the window, with SHR potentially going to Chevy\u2026whatever they are, Haas Factory Team.\u201d<\/p>\n ADVERTISEMENT<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n This would mark a seismic shift in terms of OEM allegiance for Gene Haas. In his tenure with Ford, he had achieved massive success<\/a> \u2013 although that was before the Next-Gen era. Teams now use single-source suppliers rather than spending millions engineering their own parts and pieces, an advantage that bigger organizations had in the past. The increased emphasis on software development, sim, and a different set of tools in the toolbox compelled Haas to rely on RFK Racing. Joe Custer said so in 2024: \u201cWe\u2019re leaning on Brad (Keselowski) and his group at RFK to add to what our knowledge base is and help us evolve. Strategically, there\u2019s resources that we can offer that can make their program stronger and vice versa.\u201d\u00a0But now, the days of this association is apparently limited.<\/p>\n As this NASCAR rumor swirls around the Haas Factory Team, fans are getting excited. Notably, this excitement is on the negative side.<\/p>\n NASCAR fans dissect this sudden shift<\/strong><\/p>\n Granted, Haas Factory Team was not faring well in the Cup Series. But the Ford team\u2019s segment in the Xfinity Series has been excelling. Sam Mayer<\/a>, who shifted from JR Motorsports and Chevrolet, has been at the top of the championship conversation. His dazzling victory at Iowa Speedway, 12 top fives, and 15 top tens enthralled fans. Hence, somebody lamented about the NASCAR rumor: \u201cBye, bye Ford in the Xfinity Series.\u201d Another fan also could not believe that Mayer\u2019s achievements missed Haas\u2019 gaze. So, they rooted out another explanation for the rumored OEM shift: \u201cMy guess would be Haas has some Chevy ties. His team was Chevy before he went to prison and sold part of it to Stewart. And it always seemed like Stewart was the one behind the switch to Ford.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"article-image\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Cole-Custer-car.jpg\")
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