Stewart no longer haunted by disappointments at Indy

By Jared Turner - SceneDaily Staff Writer

Thursday, July 24, 2008

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Jason Smith / Getty Images

Jason Smith / Getty Images

There was a time when Indianapolis Motor Speedway tormented Tony Stewart. Every season, the native Hoosier would go to the Brickyard and run among the leaders for most of the race but, for one reason or another, be denied a victory.

And every time he returned to Indy, Stewart was asked the same old nagging question: When are you going to win here?

Six times he tried in the NASCAR Cup Series and six times he failed. Five times he tried in the IndyCar Series and five times he fell short. The track where the Columbus, Ind., native dreamed of racing and winning since childhood became his worst nightmare. And Stewart, as at other points throughout his career, let his frustrations show.

Then he found victory lane in the 2005 Allstate 400 at the Brickyard and everything changed.

“You know, every year that we went there, whether it was an IndyCar or a stock car and had not won there yet, just that pressure kept building,” Stewart said earlier this week. “Once we won it in 2005, it took a lot of pressure off and then winning last year even took more pressure off.

"I think in all reality, after each time that you've won there, I think it makes it easier when you go [back] there. … I don't want you guys to confuse the desire of winning versus the pressure of winning.

“I think the pressure goes away, but the desire is still there. ... If anything, it makes it easier to focus on what you're trying to do and what you're trying to accomplish because you don't sit there and wonder all weekend: ‘What would it be like to win?’"

Only nine Cup drivers know the feeling of winning at Indy. Only three know the feeling of winning there more than once. When Stewart earned his second Brickyard triumph last season, he joined Jeff Gordon and Dale Jarrett as the only stock car drivers to visit Indy’s hallowed victory lane multiple times.

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And he did it in convincing fashion, too, as the Joe Gibbs Racing driver led seven times for 65 laps, including the final 10 after taking the lead from Richard Childress Racing’s Kevin Harvick with a bold move to the inside.

“You're obviously proud when you go back, especially after the first [win],” said Stewart, who will make his 10th Cup start at the 2.5-mile track in Sunday's Allstate 400. “I don't think we got to enjoy the win as much as we did the second year. I think the first year it was more of just a huge weight lifted off our shoulders that we accomplished a lifelong dream of ours.

“I think last year it was a chance that we really got to enjoy it with our team, and you know, really we're able to enjoy the win that night versus just the emotional drain of just finally accomplishing a goal like it was the first time around.”

Before getting the monkey off his back, Stewart almost always ran near the front at Indy, only to fade in the late stages of the race.

It happened in 2002 when he started on the pole and led 43 laps but finished 12th. In happened again the next year when he led 60 laps but ended up 12th again.

A similar scenario unfolded when Stewart scored his best Indy 500 finish, fifth, in 1997. On that day, he led 64 laps before falling back in the final laps.

Stewart’s most recent Indy 500 start in came 2001 during his third full Cup season with JGR. On that day, he also drove in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.

That may have been the last time that Stewart, who is leaving the Gibbs organization at the end of the season to become an owner/driver at Stewart-Haas Racing, tries to pull the Memorial Day weekend double.

“With this new venture, I feel like I need to focus that much more energy toward the Cup program,” he said. “When I was just strictly going to be a driver, it's a lot easier to try to do things outside the box, but I feel like now I've got more responsibility on me, and I'm responsible for a lot more people. Even if logistics worked out, I don't see myself trying to go back and run the 500 anymore. ...

"Dedicating and splitting my time up between the two events is just going to dilute my effort with what we are doing on the Cup side, so I'm just going to focus on that."

Though it seems an Indy 500 win isn't in his future now, Stewart knows he will always have his stock-car triumphs at Indianapolis to cherish. Even if it took a few tries to secure them.

"You know what that feeling is like and you know what to do to accomplish that goal, and it's just a matter of going out and doing the work to accomplish it," he said. "But I think it takes a lot of the pressure off to where you can just focus better and worry about the task at hand and what you have to do to win that race."

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8 responses to "Stewart no longer haunted by disappointments at Indy"
  1. 1
    Scott Baker said:
    Jul 23, 2008 at 3:01 PM

    Tony should put his undivided attention and focus on Indy this year, because it may be his last real chance to win another race, with JGR. Once he leaves JGR everything changes.

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  2. 2
    Timothy Schultze said:
    Jul 23, 2008 at 8:57 PM

    Tony will not win in a Toyota he could have won at Daytona in July he knew it and got out of the car he has no intention of winning in a Toyota and i could care less about what you think be realistic.

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  3. 3
    Jayne Deere said:
    Jul 23, 2008 at 9:37 PM

    Yes, everything will change as it must. Change is required in order for growth to take place. It won't be his last chance to win a race. It will be the beginning of bigger and better things for Tony Stewart.

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  4. 4
    Sharleen Snygg said:
    Jul 24, 2008 at 2:05 PM

    Tony will win, if some strange thing doesn't happen. He is still going to focus on winning for JGR and his team. Go Tony!!!

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  5. 5
    Gladys Bedwell said:
    Jul 24, 2008 at 4:21 PM

    Mr. Timothy Schultz - I am not sure I am reading your comment correctly but it sounds like you are saying Tony will not go for a win in a Toyota. If that is what you are saying, you are DEAD wrong. Winning is what it is all about for Tony whether it be in a Toyota or on a lawn mower. If he is in a car that is capable of winning, he will do it. Tony was too sick to drive, he stated he was making to many mistakes on the track and putting the other drivers safety at risk. Tony has gotten out of the car before when he was sick. It was at one of the road course back in 2000. You are the one who needs to be realistic Mr. Schultz

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  6. 6
    jerry swiatek said:
    Jul 24, 2008 at 4:47 PM

    I suppose it is important for drivers to win in thier native state nowadays. But I want to take you to a time when A.J. Foyt was racing, Illinois, New Jersey, Indiana, Wisconson and more,-- He would take the michrophone from the announcer and proceed with,-- I love this state and its people, I will always be here to race, and don't let anyone say anything else about that without answering to me. I myself have been there and heard it first hand often

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  7. 7
    Jayne Deere said:
    Jul 24, 2008 at 9:37 PM

    Tony will definitely win before this season is over, probably before the chase begins.

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  8. 8
    Sarah Simoens said:
    Jul 25, 2008 at 5:36 AM

    Mr. Schultze- I really hate to burst your bubble, but Tony already has 5 wins in a Toyota. Go check your Nationwide results. I have to totally agree with Gladys Bedwell, Tony is all about winning, that is why he is a Champion!

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