Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne Stewart, nicknamed "Smoke", is an American professional auto racing driver, and former NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart–Haas Racing. He competes in the NHRA Top Fuel class for Tony Stewart Racing, and part-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, driving the No. 25 Ram 1500 for Kaulig Racing. He is a four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, winning two as a driver, one as owner/driver, and one as an owner.
Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won racing titles in Indy, midget, sprint, and USAC Silver Crown cars. He is the only driver in history to win a championship in both IndyCar and NASCAR. Stewart became known for his hot temper and for his sarcasm with the media.
Stewart last competed full-time in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series during the 2016 season, driving the No. 14 Chevrolet SS for his team, Stewart–Haas Racing, under crew chief Mike Bugarewicz. From 1999 to 2008, he drove the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing car, under crew chief Greg Zipadelli with The Home Depot as the primary sponsor. While driving for car owner Joe Gibbs, Stewart won two Cup Series championships in 2002 and 2005. In 2011, Stewart became the first owner-driver since Alan Kulwicki to win the Cup Series championship. Stewart is the only driver to win the Cup Series championship under the old points system and the chase playoff format, and is the only driver to win the title under three different sponsorships. He is also the first driver in the Cup Series to win the championship by a tiebreaker. On May 22, 2019, Stewart was voted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame, and on January 31, 2020, was inducted alongside the 11th Hall of Fame class. On November 21, 2021, he married NHRA Top Fuel Drag Racer Leah Pruett. He replaced Pruett in Top Fuel for the 2024 season as Pruett stepped aside to start a family with Stewart.
Racing career
Beginnings
Stewart got his first competitive go kart in Westport, Indiana in 1979. In 1980, he won his first championship. He grew up racing go karts and was successful very early, winning a World Karting Association championship in 1987. He moved up to the United Midget Racing Association, where he raced TQ midgets until 1991, when he again moved up, this time to the United States Auto Club series with the help of one of his karting sponsors and friend Mark Dismore. Stewart was the USAC Rookie of the Year in 1991, USAC National Midget Series Champion in 1994 and 1995, and USAC Silver Crown Series champion in 1995.IndyCar and NASCAR Xfinity Series
In 1995, Stewart became the first driver to win USAC's version of the Triple Crown, earning championships in all three of USAC's major divisions, National Midget, Sprint, and Silver Crown. His winning the Hut Hundred and 4 Crown Nationals were the highlights of the year. With the advent of the Indy Racing League, which intended to provide opportunities for grassroots racers, Stewart found his way into Indy car racing; after unsuccessful negotiations with A. J. Foyt Racing, he signed early in 1996 for Team Menard as a last-minute addition for the abridged three-race initial season. In his Indy car debut at Walt Disney World Speedway, Stewart led 37 laps and finished a close second to fellow rookie Buzz Calkins. He also led laps at Phoenix in the early stages before a myriad of pit stop woes and mechanical issues led to his early exit from the race.For his Indianapolis 500 debut, Stewart initially qualified on the outside of the front row, but the disqualification of Arie Luyendyk's time and the death of his teammate Scott Brayton a week later propelled Stewart to the pole position. After leading 44 laps, his race ended before the halfway point due to a malfunctioning pop-off valve, which dropped him to 8th in the final point standings. When Stewart was not racing IndyCars, he raced stock cars, which he had signed to do beforehand. In 1996, he made his NASCAR Busch Series debut, driving for car owner Harry Rainer. In nine races, he had a best finish of 16th place. Stewart had more success in a one-time ride in the Truck Series with Mueller Brothers Racing, where he finished 10th.
Stewart was poised to improve his IRL standing in the 1996-97 season, but at times he struggled to finish. He failed to finish the first three races of a ten-race schedule, but recovered to come in second at Phoenix. At that year's Indy 500, Stewart's car was good enough to enable him to win his first IRL race, leading 64 laps. However, he trailed off near the end of the race and settled for 5th place. He finally got his first career win at Pikes Peak, where he led all but seven laps of a 200-lap race. He became the leading contender for the series championship after a bad slump knocked points leader Davey Hamilton out of first place. Despite an average end to his season, finishing seventh, fourteenth, and eleventh, and five DNFs, Stewart did just enough to beat Hamilton for the IRL title. He also raced in several midget events, finishing thirteenth and eleventh in the 1997 and 1998 USAC national points, and winning the Copper Classic both years. Between his time in USAC and the IRL, Stewart earned the nickname of "Smoke", first for slipping the right rear tire during dirt races and then for blowing his engine often during his 1997 championship run.
As he had done the previous year, Stewart raced a handful of Busch Series races in 1998. This time, he was racing for Joe Gibbs, NFL Hall of Fame head coach of the Washington Redskins, who was having major success with Bobby Labonte in the Winston Cup Series. When Stewart was able to finish races, he finished in the top-ten and had a third-place finish at Charlotte. Stewart so impressed Gibbs that he was signed to drive the majority of the Busch schedule in 1998 to go along with a full-time IRL schedule. The double duty did not affect his performance in either series. In the IRL, he won twice and finished third in the championship. His season was a disappointment as he finished last in the Indy 500 because of an engine failure.
On the Busch side, Stewart finished in the top five five times in 22 starts. He came close to winning his first Busch Series race at Rockingham, but was beaten on a last-lap pass by Matt Kenseth. Stewart finished a solid second place in second starts, ahead of six drivers with more starts, and had an average finish that was comparable to some of the series' top-ten finishers. Gibbs had enough confidence in Stewart that he was moved up to a Cup ride for the 1999 season. With that move, Stewart ended his three-year career as a full-time IRL driver.
After transitioning to the Cup level, Stewart continued racing in the Busch Series on a part-time basis. On August 16, 2005, Stewart was fined $5,000 and placed on probation until December 31 for hitting Brian Vickers after the completion of the Busch Series Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen. He was driving a Busch car owned by Kevin Harvick Incorporated at the time.
In 2013, Stewart renewed his RCR deal to drive the No. 33 Oreo/Ritz Chevrolet. He won the opening Nationwide Series event at Daytona, overtaking Regan Smith on the last lap, but his win was overshadowed by worry because Smith had been turned and in the resulting crash, Kyle Larson had flown into the catch fence, completely slicing off the front part of his car and injuring 28 spectators in the grandstands. The next day in the Daytona 500, Stewart's day ended on lap 35 when he was caught up in an early crash with Kevin Harvick and Kasey Kahne; this would allow him to finish 41st. He rebounded slightly with an eighth-place finish at Phoenix and an eleventh-place finish in Las Vegas. At Bristol, Stewart blew his tire on lap 3 and cut a brake line; he came back out over 20 laps down, unable to contend for the victory.
In 2020, Stewart planned to make his return to the now-Xfinity Series for the Pennzoil 150 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's road course, but plans were called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
NASCAR Cup Series
After competing part-time during the 1996 NASCAR Busch Series season with the team, Stewart had planned to move up to the Winston Cup Series in 1997 driving for Ranier-Walsh Racing; however the deal fell through when Stewart decided he was not yet ready for the move.Joe Gibbs Racing (1999–2008)
1999 season
Stewart started his NASCAR Cup career in 1999 with a bang, as he qualified his No. 20 The Home Depot-sponsored Pontiac on the outside pole for the Daytona 500. He showed courage in one of the Gatorade Twin 125s when he was involved in a battle with Dale Earnhardt for the lead in the last laps. Though Earnhardt came out on top, Stewart had nonetheless impressed quite a few people with his performance. In the 500, Stewart ran near the front until problems with the car relegated him to a 28th-place finish.Stewart spent most of his rookie season wowing people, as his car was often in the top five. He won a pair of pole positions at short tracks, and set a series record for wins by a rookie with three—Richmond, Phoenix, and Homestead—surpassing Davey Allison's record set in 1987. He finished his first Cup season with three wins, twelve top-fives, 21 top-tens, two poles, only one DNF, 1,226 laps led, a 10.26 average finish, and a fourth-place finish in the point standings, making it the highest points finish by a rookie in the modern era and only bested by James Hylton, who finished second as a first-timer in 1966. Not surprisingly, he ran away with the Winston Cup Rookie of the Year award.
Stewart also attempted to race on Memorial Day weekend, as he competed in both the Indy 500 during the day and the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, N.C., at night. He finished in the top-ten at both races: ninth in the 1999 Indianapolis 500 and fourth at Charlotte. However, he only completed of the scheduled 1,100, as he finished four laps down at Indianapolis.