Aric Almirola says Stewart-Haas Racing needs to know his 2024 plans within the next 30 to 60 days so plans can be made, if necessary, for the No. 10 Ford Mustang.
“They have to plan for the future way more than I do,” Almirola told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “I’m very capable of pivoting and changing and switching, but the race team, there are a lot of moving parts with the race team. So, the race team certainly needs to have an idea of what’s going on and the sooner, the better.
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“Those are active discussions and there are a lot of moving parts. There are a lot of variables, and it’s complicated. It’s not very easy.”
Almirola was set to retire from full-time NASCAR Cup Series competition after the 2022 season. However, interest from the team and sponsors for Almirola to keep racing and the Almirola family finding a more balanced personal life led to a change in plans.
A year later, Almirola has “no idea” what he’s going to do next. The three-time Cup Series winner said he doesn’t have a clear direction of which way he’ll decide.
Stewart-Haas Racing has already had to fill one seat in its camp for next season. Josh Berry will replace Kevin Harvick in the No. 4 Ford Mustang.
Almirola has driven for Stewart-Haas since 2018, earning two of his three victories with the organization. Last year was the first season Almirola failed to make the postseason with the No. 10 team.
Almirola’s full-time Cup Series career began in 2012.
When asked further about his timeline Saturday at Richmond Raceway, Almirola didn’t have much to add. He reiterated that it is a complicated process and there is more to the story than what the public sees.
“(The conversations have been) going on that’s not something new,” Almirola said. “We just continue to work through that, but right now, my focus is on winning at Richmond.
“We had such a great race car at Loudon, and we want to come back here and complete it. We want to execute and capitalize on a great short-track program that we have. We know we’re still looking for speed at the downforce-type racetracks, but Daytona is a great opportunity for us. But we don’t want to wait that long. So, got a lot of focus here on Richmond.”