J.D. Gibbs calls Stewart contract situation 'a nuisance' to driver, team
SONOMA, Calif. – Tony Stewart's contract situation is "a nuisance" for both the driver and his Joe Gibbs Racing team, JGR President J.D. Gibbs said Friday.
"It is hard," Gibbs said. "If you look back, each team goes through this every other year, it seems like. Until you get it put to bed, it is kind of a nuisance – to Tony, to our guys.
"That doesn’t mean you make your decision quick just to be done with it. You’ve got to take your time and our hope is we can work something out and go into the future."
Gibbs' comments came in response to crew chief Greg Zipadelli, who told ESPN.com that Stewart's contract situation was hanging over the team.
For his part, Stewart blamed it on the media.
"The wear comes from you guys," Stewart said. "That’s the moral to the story. We’re all doing fine, we’ve all been doing fine.
"It’s having to answer the same questions week-in and week-out when we’ve told you all along that if there’s something new to tell you, we’ll tell you."
Stewart is signed through next year, but is said to be exploring his options to drive somewhere else – including owning his own team – next year.
"People are always wanting to know, what’s going on, what’s going on," Gibbs said. "For guys that come to the track just to really race, all that stuff after a while wears on you. It’s not like you have something to really announce."
Gibbs said he was unable to predict when Stewart's situation would be resolved, but that JGR still hopes to extend the two-time Cup champion to a longer deal.
"We're still hoping something works out," he said.
