SteelerzGirl
07-26-2006, 10:32 AM
Since there's no race this week... Would we be more tolerant of this type of on-track behavior if The Intimidator were still with us?
Last Lap: Where there's Smoke, there's ire
By Marty Smith, NASCAR.COM
July 25, 2006
Tony Stewart is a living, breathing oxymoron.
There is the selfless Tony Stewart, humble and compassionate, described so eloquently by Pattie Petty five days ago in this very cranny of cyberspace; he of genuine altruism whose grace, generosity and love for the Petty family, and for the initiatives they champion, had helped suppress the pain of an incurable emotional wound.
Then there's the other side, the selfish Tony Stewart, the polar opposite; he of the 3,400-pound body slam, seemingly unable to differentiate between that which he preaches and that which he practices.
He incessantly complains about others' unwillingness to "give-and-take," yet for the second consecutive week refused to give an inch early in the race and damaged a Home Depot Chevrolet potentially capable of going to Victory Lane.
I understand it's racing, and ultimately its fundamental premise is going faster than, and passing, the next guy. But there's a bigger picture here, and if Stewart isn't careful he'll not find himself in it.
See, last year he let adversity ride, didn't let it get to him. Come December he was the champion. This year he's letting it get to him, and it could potentially mark his demise.
At New Hampshire, Ryan Newman was a lap down and on new tires. But instead of letting Newman scurry off to try to get a lap back, Stewart raced him as if it were the final turn of the final lap. He wanted to make a point: I'm tired of the way you're racing me.
They wrecked. Did Stewart make his disdain for Newman's advancement tactics known? Absolutely. Was it worth it? I'd venture to say not. It was Lap 91. And the 12 couldn't run with the 20 that day, anyway.
But instead of battling Kyle Busch for a victory, Stewart's emotions got away from him and he paid for it with a 37th-place finish.
Fast forward to Pocono. It's the old "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me" deal. Did Clint Bowyer pinch Stewart into the wall off the corner? Possibly. Was it blatant? No way. Was it worthy of retaliation? Absolutely not.
"I'm taking 100 percent responsibility for the final incident that occurred on lap 32 between myself, the 07 [Clint Bowyer] and the 99 [Carl Edwards]. It was totally my fault.
"At the same time, there were circumstances that led up to that wreck, and after talking with Clint this morning, we both have a better understanding as to what happened. He was trying to get out of my way and didn't realize that I had gone to the outside.
"He thought I was to his inside, and when he tried to give me some room, he slid into us and it put us into the outside wall. I reacted, causing the wreck that I take responsibility for and regret."
To his credit, Stewart took full responsibility Monday afternoon once he'd studied the replay and discussed the evolution of the collision with Bowyer.
The Pennsylvania 500-mile race was just 78 miles old. Stewart's heat-of-the-moment, rash decision effectively ruined an innocent bystander's opportunity to run for a championship.
Then, following the race, he again discussed others' unwillingness to race as they'd like to be raced.
"If the 3 car was here, I don't think we would have the same problems in this series as we have," Stewart said in reference to Dale Earnhardt's forceful method of getting a point across. "He always had a way of letting drivers know where they stood and when to move and when not to move.
"It's just the first-year and second-year drivers that don't understand that there needs to be a little give and take. There is only a handful of guys that don't get it, but the problem is they are in good racecars and they don't run up front enough to learn from the rest of us how to race up front."
There is certainly a different racing etiquette among the top-10 positions than that found among the bottom 20. Any driver will tell you that. Bowyer is learning. He has five top-10 finishes, and has been a top-10 car more often than that.
Some folks want to nominate Tony Stewart the Nextel Cup mayor, the voice of reason. Not me, at least not at this stage of his career. (Jeff Burton is the guy, in my opinion, especially now that he's up front again.)
Stewart is wonderfully, admirably philanthropic. He is also NASCAR's best driver.
But a voice of reason he is not. Voices of reason ponder the big picture.
In opening his heart and wallet to others, Stewart is all big picture, driven by a genuine want of the greater-good for those he cares about and for those less fortunate than him.
But in the competitive arena, and considering the manner in which he's currently racing, the big picture is the last thing on his mind.
To close, a few e-mails on the subject:
D. Critch: After [Sunday's] race, let us hope that Mike Helton and the powers that be also dock Tony at least 25 points. (Unfortunately to be fair they will have to dock Carl Edwards.)
Tony has been very busy preaching this year about rough driving, yet he is in the thick of it 90 percent of the time. He gets on his high horse and lectures and makes false claims.
Please teach him a harder lesson than he received at the race (especially in lieu of giving the finger to another driver.) Edwards' penalty was harsher. He had to start at the back, not double-file.
Again, Edwards lost the most in the altercation. One man's frustration at another for a perceived transgression, from which Edwards was completely removed, ultimately sealed his season's fate.
So here he sits, one year removed from finishing 30 points short of a championship, virtually eliminated from the 2006 Chase for the Nextel Cup.
How's Edwards supposed to feel? He made it clear how he'd prefer to react. But even if he'd gotten the chance to "make [Stewart] bleed," he'd still be racing for 11th come New Hampshire.
-Continued-
Last Lap: Where there's Smoke, there's ire
By Marty Smith, NASCAR.COM
July 25, 2006
Tony Stewart is a living, breathing oxymoron.
There is the selfless Tony Stewart, humble and compassionate, described so eloquently by Pattie Petty five days ago in this very cranny of cyberspace; he of genuine altruism whose grace, generosity and love for the Petty family, and for the initiatives they champion, had helped suppress the pain of an incurable emotional wound.
Then there's the other side, the selfish Tony Stewart, the polar opposite; he of the 3,400-pound body slam, seemingly unable to differentiate between that which he preaches and that which he practices.
He incessantly complains about others' unwillingness to "give-and-take," yet for the second consecutive week refused to give an inch early in the race and damaged a Home Depot Chevrolet potentially capable of going to Victory Lane.
I understand it's racing, and ultimately its fundamental premise is going faster than, and passing, the next guy. But there's a bigger picture here, and if Stewart isn't careful he'll not find himself in it.
See, last year he let adversity ride, didn't let it get to him. Come December he was the champion. This year he's letting it get to him, and it could potentially mark his demise.
At New Hampshire, Ryan Newman was a lap down and on new tires. But instead of letting Newman scurry off to try to get a lap back, Stewart raced him as if it were the final turn of the final lap. He wanted to make a point: I'm tired of the way you're racing me.
They wrecked. Did Stewart make his disdain for Newman's advancement tactics known? Absolutely. Was it worth it? I'd venture to say not. It was Lap 91. And the 12 couldn't run with the 20 that day, anyway.
But instead of battling Kyle Busch for a victory, Stewart's emotions got away from him and he paid for it with a 37th-place finish.
Fast forward to Pocono. It's the old "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me" deal. Did Clint Bowyer pinch Stewart into the wall off the corner? Possibly. Was it blatant? No way. Was it worthy of retaliation? Absolutely not.
"I'm taking 100 percent responsibility for the final incident that occurred on lap 32 between myself, the 07 [Clint Bowyer] and the 99 [Carl Edwards]. It was totally my fault.
"At the same time, there were circumstances that led up to that wreck, and after talking with Clint this morning, we both have a better understanding as to what happened. He was trying to get out of my way and didn't realize that I had gone to the outside.
"He thought I was to his inside, and when he tried to give me some room, he slid into us and it put us into the outside wall. I reacted, causing the wreck that I take responsibility for and regret."
To his credit, Stewart took full responsibility Monday afternoon once he'd studied the replay and discussed the evolution of the collision with Bowyer.
The Pennsylvania 500-mile race was just 78 miles old. Stewart's heat-of-the-moment, rash decision effectively ruined an innocent bystander's opportunity to run for a championship.
Then, following the race, he again discussed others' unwillingness to race as they'd like to be raced.
"If the 3 car was here, I don't think we would have the same problems in this series as we have," Stewart said in reference to Dale Earnhardt's forceful method of getting a point across. "He always had a way of letting drivers know where they stood and when to move and when not to move.
"It's just the first-year and second-year drivers that don't understand that there needs to be a little give and take. There is only a handful of guys that don't get it, but the problem is they are in good racecars and they don't run up front enough to learn from the rest of us how to race up front."
There is certainly a different racing etiquette among the top-10 positions than that found among the bottom 20. Any driver will tell you that. Bowyer is learning. He has five top-10 finishes, and has been a top-10 car more often than that.
Some folks want to nominate Tony Stewart the Nextel Cup mayor, the voice of reason. Not me, at least not at this stage of his career. (Jeff Burton is the guy, in my opinion, especially now that he's up front again.)
Stewart is wonderfully, admirably philanthropic. He is also NASCAR's best driver.
But a voice of reason he is not. Voices of reason ponder the big picture.
In opening his heart and wallet to others, Stewart is all big picture, driven by a genuine want of the greater-good for those he cares about and for those less fortunate than him.
But in the competitive arena, and considering the manner in which he's currently racing, the big picture is the last thing on his mind.
To close, a few e-mails on the subject:
D. Critch: After [Sunday's] race, let us hope that Mike Helton and the powers that be also dock Tony at least 25 points. (Unfortunately to be fair they will have to dock Carl Edwards.)
Tony has been very busy preaching this year about rough driving, yet he is in the thick of it 90 percent of the time. He gets on his high horse and lectures and makes false claims.
Please teach him a harder lesson than he received at the race (especially in lieu of giving the finger to another driver.) Edwards' penalty was harsher. He had to start at the back, not double-file.
Again, Edwards lost the most in the altercation. One man's frustration at another for a perceived transgression, from which Edwards was completely removed, ultimately sealed his season's fate.
So here he sits, one year removed from finishing 30 points short of a championship, virtually eliminated from the 2006 Chase for the Nextel Cup.
How's Edwards supposed to feel? He made it clear how he'd prefer to react. But even if he'd gotten the chance to "make [Stewart] bleed," he'd still be racing for 11th come New Hampshire.
-Continued-