by Ann Stanzer

Created on: June 20, 2008   Last Updated: November 24, 2008

Tony Stewart started his career in the Sprint Cup, formerly known as Winston Cup and the Nextel Cup, in 1999. He has driven the # 20 Home Depot car for Joe Gibbs Racing since the start of his career in the Cup series. His first race was at the Daytona 500 in 1999 with his first win at the Exide NASCAR Select Batteries 400 at Richmond, Virginia that same year. In his first year he was named Winston Cup Rookie of the Year. Tony proved to be an impressive driver in that first year finishing 4th in points. He then went on to win six races in 2000 and finished 6th in points due to several DNF's that same year. The 2001 season started off with a dramatic crash which Stewart walked away from in the Daytona 500. He won three races that year and was runner up to Jeff Gordon for the Winston Cup. 2002 was a good year with consistent wins and his first Winston Cup championship. The year also brought Stewart frequent negative media coverage because of an altercation with a photographer at the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis.

Stewart became the owner of the legendary short track Eldora Speedway in New Weston, Ohio in 2004. In that year, he qualified 4th in the chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup. 2005 brought Tony Stewart his second championship along with a $5000 fine for hitting Brian Vicker's car after the Busch Series Zippo 200 at Watkins Glen in New York. Stewart was also placed on probation that year until December 31st. He ended up finishing 11th in points after winning three races in the 2006 season, after a shoulder injury at Charlotte on Memorial Day. 2007 brought Tony wins at Chicago, Watkins Glen, and the Brickyard. Tony has yet to win a race in the 2008 season, but stated on his Sirius Radio show that he was getting hungry for a win and soon. He finished fifth in his last race at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. The Home Depot team is looking forward to the road course at Sonoma. Aerodynamics are not a concern, just a well handling race car. Tony's record on road courses is an average of eighth place.
Tony Stewart has been a controversial figure in the sport and lets his opinion be known, although he seems to have mellowed somewhat. He hosts his own radio show on Monday night at 8 p.m. on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 128. Tony's contract with Gibbs Racing is up in 2009 and he has indicated that he would be interested in owning his own team at some point in the future.

Learn more about this author, Ann Stanzer.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.