Former NASCAR Cup Series driver and team owner Tony Stewart is one phenomenon in the sport who needs no introduction. Having made his fortunes with Joe Gibbs Racing during his driving days then moving on to the ownership side with his team, Stewart has made racing the means of his living.
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However, the now NHRA drag racer’s first paycheck did not come from racing in any series, in fact, far from it. During a 2015 interview, the now 53-year-old revealed how he made money for the first time in his life, “My first official paycheck came from the Bartholomew County School Corporation. I worked at the school auditorium and it was like $12.70 for working a show.”
He elaborated on how he took care of the lighting and sound department while he was a junior in high school back in the day. While he revealed he did hold jobs prior to this one, his first official paycheck came from his tenure at the school auditorium.
“It was just a job while I was in school. Actually, I’d had jobs before that, but that was the first job where I got an official paycheck,” he elaborated.
Stewart winded down his driving career in NASCAR in 2016 after driving for his own team — Stewart-Haas Racing. An owner-operated venture, he partnered with Gene Haas and took over the reins of the Haas CNC Racing team in 2009.
As of 2025, the team has been dissolved. Gene Haas retains a single charter from the erstwhile team, rebranded as the Haas Factory team which will field Cole Custer this season.
Why did Stewart choose to enter into the business side of things despite being a world-class driver?
“Now there’s a plan for what’s life going to be like after driving,” opined Stewart, planning his future as a driver in the sport and how he could sustain himself within the sport going forward if that was to be taken away from him. Fortunately, the Indiana native is in good health and races to this day, albeit in a different genre of motorsports altogether.
Stewart’s devotion to the world of racing can also be seen in his ownership of the famed Eldora Speedway, a venue known for hosting one of the country’s best grassroots dirt track racing events.
While the NASCAR world prepares to kick off its 2025 season, Stewart, now retired from the sport by all means welcomed his first child with his wife Leah Pruett. He seems to be taking things at a slower pace in life now, however, only when he is not behind the wheel of his top fuel dragster.
