Before Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, another NASCAR stalwart held the reputation of the NASCAR’s bad boy. And it was none other than Tony Stewart. However, in a throwback interview from 2011, Stewart explained how his on-track antics stay limited just to the track and how none of that ever affected his relationship with his co-drivers.
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In fact, Stewart resorted to calling out some media publications, and how they had always wanted the drivers to indulge in these skirmishes. It all started at an interview during the 2011 NASCAR Winston Cup championship weekend.
A reporter asked the 2011 Cup Series champion how it feels like sitting next to his then-rival Carl Edwards, especially after racing against him. Tony Stewart was amused by the question. He admitted that, as professional drivers, he and Edwards have been doing that for years.
Smoke said that his demeanor wasn’t any different from usual. “You guys and ESPN loves to try to build that c**p in between everybody,” said the Stewart-Haas Racing co-owner. “At least they’re consistent about it. Everybody at ESPN is consistent about that. I don’t see it being any different than normal.”
However, Stewart didn’t stop at that. Known for his sense of humor, he pointed at the chair in between him and Edwards and told the reporter, “If you want, we can eliminate the chair to make you feel better.”
The 2011 Championship race between Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards was anything but normal
In 2011, the entire community of NASCAR witnessed a tie-breaker for the first time. As Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards tied on points, NASCAR had to resort to a tie-breaker to determine the champion.
Unfortunately, for Edwards, Tony Stewart had five wins in the 2011 season, while Edwards had just one. Needless to say, Tony Stewart’s performance was enough to get him the titular win, which was also his third and final championship triumph.
Moments after winning the Championship, Stewart fired his crew chief Darian Grubb. To everyone back in the day, this came as a shock. Neither had Grubb made any infraction to the rules of the team, nor had he done anything egregious for Stewart to relieve him of his duty at the end of the season.
So why would the three-time Cup Series champ make such an extreme decision? The reason is still not clear.
