NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart reflected on his scary crash from Sunday during the second round of eliminations at the NHRA drag racing’s playoff-opening race in Reading, Pennsylvania.
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Stewart, who came on as a guest on this week’s edition of the Dale Jr. Download podcast, made a team announcement to start with. The news that Rico Abreu will merge his family-owned sprint car team with Tony Stewart Racing, which recently parted ways with longtime veteran driver Donny Schatz.
Stewart then addressed the terrifying crash he was involved in. It happened when competitor Doug Kalitta’s car won the race with Stewart, but then crossed the center line due to a mechanical failure. Kalitta’s car basically sideswiped Stewart’s 330-plus mph Top Fuel dragster, sending it sliding on its left side for over 100 feet before it rolled back onto all four wheels.
Stewart exited his wrecked dragster without outside help, but was visibly shaken. Fortunately, the three-time NASCAR Cup champ was not seriously injured in the crash, nor was Kalitta.
Stewart uses laughter to help his recovery
Earnhardt asked Stewart about how he was shown moving very slowly after exiting his dragster. Stewart was then taken to the infield medical care center, where he was checked and released.
“I don’t move super-fast anyway on a good day,” Stewart chuckled. As he usually does when reflecting on adversity, Stewart gave an update on his condition in his own inimitable way: With laughter. “I feel fine,” Stewart said.
“I mean, I felt like somebody had literally dropped a 15-pound bowling ball off the top of a large step ladder right on top of my head for about six straight hours. But that got better, and here we are three days after it, and I just feel like a telephone pole walking around. Like all the muscles are tight and sore,” he added.
It was the first wreck of Stewart’s nearly two-year career piloting a Top Fuel dragster. He hopes it will be his last. “We’ve had bad wrecks in Cup cars and Xfinity cars and sprint cars,” added Stewart. “I mean, that’s the way you feel the next day. But the best thing you can do is just get right back in the car. That’s what loosens it up.”
Stewart will get right back behind the wheel of his 12,000-horsepower dragster this weekend as NHRA returns to Charlotte, North Carolina, for the NHRA 4-Wide Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway. That’s the second race of the six-race NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoffs. He had finished third at zMAX Dragway in the spring 4-Wide race there.
Stewart still in Contention for the NHRA Top Fuel championship
The crash at Reading cost Stewart in the points standings. He came into the race leading the Top Fuel class, but left second in the standings, still a close 18 points behind new leader Kalitta.
Last week, Stewart announced that he will be exiting his car after this season. He will hand the wheel back over to his wife, Leah Pruett. who stepped out of the car after the 2023 season to start a family with Stewart.
The family welcomed son Dominic last November, and Pruett has been chomping at the bit to get back behind the wheel (she currently is a test driver for Stewart). Pruett finished a career-high third place in the Top Fuel ranks in 2023 and is eager to return to racing and chase her first Top Fuel championship.
But before that, Stewart is definitely still in contention to win this year’s NHRA Top Fuel championship. With five races remaining in the six-race Countdown, if Stewart wins the championship, he would become the first driver in auto racing history to win championships in IndyCar, NASCAR Cup, USAC Midgets, and USAC Triple Crown, as well as championships in the now-defunct IROC and Superstar Racing Experience series.
