In what can only be considered a big blow to NASCAR’s top level racing series, Tony Stewart announced his retirement effective after the 2016 season. It is important to state that this is not a complete retirement from racing as Stewart will remain as a car owner and he will continue to race in other series just not at the top level of stock car racing of which he has been a champion three times. Stewart is a throwback in many ways, having driven all kinds of cars from sprints to Indy cars and virtually every level of stock car that there is. Through his career he has been controversial, angry, combative, aggressive, and essentially all of the things every old school racer was during their career.
The man they call Smoke has been in the depths of a slump unmatched in his NASCAR career and while some wonder if that is what is driving this decision, we’re not sure. He has been in the headlines for the wrong reasons several times over the last year from the fatal accident he was involved in during a sprint car race, to busting his leg in those same cars before that, but the guy shows up to race every week and we think that he just isn’t having the fun he once had in these cars. Stewart strikes us as the type of guy who has to be very engaged in what he is doing to continue doing it. Clearly he likes being a team owner but the driving side of things just isn’t doing it for him anymore…in stock cars at least.
Clint Bowyer will take Stewart’s seat after the 2016 season. That’s a good thing for Bowyer as we take it for a sign of respect that Stewart would tap him for the job. Obviously these seats are coveted in the sport and this one perhaps more than most. It will not do a lot for the popularity of the sport to have one of the premier names and personalities leaving and this is a guy who literally cannot be replaced in today’s racing world. Guys like him at the top level with an articulate but smart assed nature just don’t exist right now. Are there any more in the wings? Unlikely.
So there you have it. One of NASCAR’s cool guys is stepping away and while his replacement is a great driver and a good interview, he’s no Smoke.
