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Mike Knudsen Promoted to Crew Chief, with Phil Shuler Joining the Championship-Winning Crew as Co-Crew Chief
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (December 4, 2024) – Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) has
announced that Mike Knudsen has been promoted to crew chief on Matt
Hagan’s Funny Car, with Phil Shuler joining the championship-winning
team heading into 2025.
Veteran co-crew chief Mike Knudsen, who is getting promoted to crew
chief, has been with Hagan since 2013, having made the move to TSR from
Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) in 2022 with the formation of the new team.
The pair has earned three championships together in 2014, 2020 and 2023.
Knudsen started his career in Funny Car with Jim Head Racing and later
moved to Funny Car with Jerry Toliver. In 2005, Knudsen joined DSR,
where he worked with Whit Bazemore, Gary Scelzi, Cory McClenathan and
Spencer Massey, before joining Hagan’s crew.
“I’m really excited to take the next step in my career,” said Mike
Knudsen. “Thank you to Dickie’s (Venables) mentorship, I feel very
prepared to step into the crew chief role. I couldn’t ask for a better
situation. Tony (Stewart) is the best owner in the NHRA, and we have a
championship-winning team that’s led by Alex Conaway (car chief), also
with Matt being a four-time championship-winning driver. I’m also
excited to bring Phil on board. He and I have multiple years of
experience working together at DSR. I feel we will really complement
each other as co-crew chiefs. We’re excited to get the 2025 season
underway and hunt down that fifth championship for Matt.”
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Joining Knudsen in co-crew chief duties will be Phil Shuler. Shuler has
a notable background in the NHRA, most recently serving as assistant
crew chief at Maynard Family Racing on Tony Schumacher’s Top Fuel
operation. From 2003 to 2006, Shuler worked for Don Prudhomme, before
joining Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) in 2006, where he collaborated on
Jack Beckman, Gary Scelzi, Jerry Toliver, Cory McClenathan, and Spencer
Massey’s cars through 2016. Ahead of the 2017 season, Shuler joined
the U.S. Army team, where he served as assistant crew chief on the
Schumacher-driven dragster. He stepped away from nitro racing in the
NHRA after the 2019 season to work on Pro Mods and returned to nitro
with Maynard Family Racing in 2022.
“I’m really excited to get the opportunity to work with Tony Stewart
Racing,” stated Phil Shuler. There are a lot of people there that
I’ve worked with over the years at DSR and have a good relationship
with. I’ve worked with Mike Knudsen a lot. He handled clutch on a car
I was one of the crew chiefs on back in the day. He has always been a
very sharp individual and has moved up the ranks. This is a
well-deserved opportunity for him and I’m excited to help him wherever
I can. We will try to have the best Funny Car in the NHRA in 2025.”
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Tony Stewart Racing has earned 16 wins since the team’s inception in
2022. Hagan brought home 13 of those victories, as well as TSR’s first
Funny Car championship in 2023, which marked the fourth of his career.
Knudsen took on a greater role, making the tuning decision for Hagan’s
most recent win at the Texas NHRA FallNationals. Hagan defeated Bobby
Bode, Cruz Pedregon, Daniel Wilkerson and Ron Capps enroute to his 52nd
career victory.
“First, I’d like to thank Dickie for all of his contributions at
TSR,” said team owner Tony Stewart. “He and Matt were able to
accomplish a lot together over the years and we’re honored they were
able to earn the team’s first Funny Car championship together. His
mentorship and talents have been an asset to all the men around him.
Many in the industry may question why the change, and all I can say, is
as a team owner you are presented with difficult decisions often, and
the call we made to elevate Mike Knudsen to the crew chief role is what
is ultimately best for the dynamic of this team. I’m very proud of
Mike for being promoted to the crew chief role. He is a strong leader
and great tuner and well-prepared to take on this new position. With
this change, we are also excited to have Phil Shuler join the team
alongside Mike. He has a prominent background in the NHRA and I’m
looking forward to seeing what they can accomplish together.”
The 2025 NHRA season kicks off March 6-9 for the NHRA Gatornationals in
Gainesville, Florida.