Stewart likens NASCAR to wrestling
By: JENNA FRYER - Associated Press | ∞
Two-time champion Tony Stewart likened NASCAR to professional wrestling and accused it of using bogus caution flags to shape races in biting comments made on his weekly radio show.
Stewart's appearance on his Tuesday night show was his first since skipping a post-race press conference in Phoenix. He dominated Saturday night's race but lost after a late exchange of leads with winner Jeff Gordon. Stewart said he refused interviews to avoid bashing NASCAR after officials threw four cautions for debris on the track.
"It's like playing God," he said on his Sirius Satellite Radio program. "They can almost dictate the race instead of the drivers doing it. It's happened too many times this year."
Stewart, who said he was fighting a fever and left the two-hour show early, went on to say fans are complaining about debris cautions and NASCAR isn't listening.
"I guess NASCAR thinks 'Hey, wrestling worked, and it was for the most part staged, so I guess it's going to work in racing, too,' " he said. "I can't understand how long the fans are going to let NASCAR treat them like they're stupid before the fans finally turn on NASCAR.
"I don't know that they've run a fair race all year."
NASCAR officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.
Stewart led a race-high 132 laps at Phoenix but lost the lead while pitting under the final caution, which came for an accident. He used an impressive three-wide pass to re-claim the lead, only to swap it right back to Gordon, who drove away to victory.
Stewart called it the only legitimate caution of the day.
"To me, it's not all about the money, it's about the integrity of the sport," he said on his radio program. "When I feel our own sanctioning body isn't taking care of that, it's hard to support them and feel proud about being a driver in the Nextel Cup Series when they're throwing debris cautions."
He has had a frustrating start to the season, dominating several races but failing to find his way to Victory Lane. He was the class of the field at Daytona and Bristol, only to lose those races because of a wreck and mechanical failure.
He also lost a race in Atlanta when a debris caution came out while he was leading with 25 laps to go and the field pitted. Jimmie Johnson passed him for the victory with three laps to go.
Stewart was so frustrated after wrecking in Texas two weeks ago -- an accident caused by hard racing with Juan Pablo Montoya and criticized because Stewart ultimately wrecked Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- he threatened retirement.
The 35-year-old Stewart had calmed by the time he hosted last week's radio show, when he said he talked of retiring out of frustration.
NASCAR
Nextel Cup
Aaron's 499
Site: Talladega, Ala.
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying (Speed Channel, 8:15 a.m.); Sunday, race (Fox, 11 a.m.).
At a glance: Jeff Gordon is coming off a win in which he tied the late Dale Earnhardt for sixth place on the career victory list with 76. With Gordon's historic victory, he holds a 74-point lead over Jeff Burton in the Nextel Cup points. ... Gordon made his Cup debut at Talladega Superspeedway in 1993. ... This race falls on what would have been Earnhardt's 56th birthday. ... The last winner to come from the pole position was Bobby Labonte in 1998. ... Chevrolet has won seven of the eight races this season. Matt Kenseth won the Auto Club 500 in a Ford on Feb. 26. ... Jimmie Johnson, the defending Aaron's 499 champion, has won three races this season. He's the only multiple winner on the circuit.
Busch Series
Aaron's 312
Site: Talladega, Ala.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 2:05 p.m. (Speed Channel, 5 p.m., tape), Saturday, race (ABC, noon).
At a glance: At least 20 Nextel Cup Series drivers will compete in the race. ... Carl Edwards has a commanding lead in the standings with 1,525 points. He holds a 424-point lead over Dave Blaney (1,101). ... Martin Truex Jr., winner of three straight Aaron's 312 races, will try to become the first NASCAR driver in history to win the same race at Talladega four consecutive years. ... Dale Earnhardt Sr., won the same race back-to-back at Talladega Superspeedway three times (in 1983-84, 1990-91 and 1999-2000), while Dale Earnhardt Jr., has done it twice (2001-02 in the UAW-Ford 500 and 2002-03 in the Aaron's 499).
Craftsman Trucks
O'Reilly Auto Parts 250
Site: Kansas City, Kan.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 11:30 a.m.; Saturday, race (Speed Channel, 2:30 p.m.).
At a glance: Mike Skinner has won three straight races. He became the first series driver to own a pair of three-win streaks, matching his 1996 performance. He holds a 94-point lead in the standings, 745-651 over Todd Bodine. ... Skinner won the pole and finished fifth in last year's visit to Kansas. ... Veteran Joe Ruttman, 62, will return to the series driving for his late owner and friend Bobby Hamilton. ... Jason White signed a deal to drive the No. 7 Hooter's Energy Drink Chevrolet Silverado under the Pennington Motorsports banner for the remainder of the 2007 season.
INDY RACING LEAGUE
Kansas Lottery 300
Site: Kansas City
Schedule: Saturday, qualifying, 1:15 p.m.; Sunday, race (ESPN2, 1:30 p.m.).
At a glance: Six points separate the top three in the driver standings. Dan Wheldon has a three-point lead over Tony Kanaan, who has a three-point lead over Scott Dixon. ... Kanaan won this race in 2005. ... Kanaan and Dixon are the only drivers to finish in the top five in each of the three races this year. ... Helio Castroneves has won two poles this year. ... Kansas Speedway is the site of the second-closest 1-2-3 finish in IndyCar history. Kanaan, Weldon and Victor Meira were separated by 0.0242 of a second. ... Dario Franchitti has finished seventh, fifth and third in IndyCar Series races this season.
NHRA
Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals
Site: Commerce, Ga.
Schedule: Friday, qualifying, 1:30 p.m.; Saturday, qualifying, 9:30 a.m. (ESPN2, 4 p.m., tape); Sunday, eliminations, 8 a.m. (ESPN2, 4 p.m., tape).
At a glance: Warren Johnson will become just the seventh member of the drag racing community to enter the International Motorsports Hall of Fame when he is inducted today. ... One of the most impressive streaks in motorsports ended in Las Vegas when 14-time Funny Car champion John Force failed to qualify for eliminations for the first time in 395 races. ... Rod Fuller leads Top Fuel drivers with 383 points. ... Ron Capps (Carlsbad) leads the Funny Car standings with 458 points and has two victories under his belt. ... In Pro Stock, Greg Anderson (484) has a 129-point lead over Jason Line.
-- Associated Press
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Fan wrote on Apr 26, 2007 5:24 AM:Tony's a cry baby! Tony's a cry baby! Tony's a cry Baby!
Hey Tony wrote on Apr 26, 2007 11:05 AM:Yeah, it's been tough out there for you AGAIN this year! If the rookies won't pull over and let you pass of or if the NASCAR officials do things you don't like it must be that they are doing it against you! You are starting to sound like Robbie Gordon use to sound when he was racing off road and indy cars. If you can't take it retire, you won't be missed for long!
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