Nope, not a surprise. He has a lot of other irons in the fire anyway, most importantly shepherding Keelan through his very young racing career.
I'm glad he made the announcement before the season, and I'm glad that means he'll get his due pomp and circumstance throughout the season from all the race tracks and fans and such. He's earned it. He came into Cup under some pretty crazy circumstances, and he made an impact almost immediately. He was super fun to watch, his racing style is intense and he does it the right way. I've said it before, NASCAR is better with him in the races, in the hunt, and competitive. A multi-season Champion, he's 100% a first ballot HOF guy.
I will be 100% rooting for him to win the Championship this year. Even if that's not attainable, I at least hope he wins a couple more races on his way out the door.