It’s time to take a sip from the ‘Holy Grail’ of racing. The Indianapolis 500 is barely three days away, and fans can hardly contain the excitement. Neither can Fox Sports’ CEO Eric Shanks, a lifelong IndyCar fan, as he has a ton of storylines to cover. From Team Penske’s latest round of penalties to Kyle Larson’s IndyCar-NASCAR ‘Double’ attempt, Fox’s work is set. What is more thrilling to the media giant is its special guest of honor, who is a storyline in himself – Tony Stewart.
The versatile motorsports legend has a history in the Indy 500 that nobody can beat. Tony Stewart undertook five starts in the prestigious race between 1996 and 2001. Each one spelled a golden legacy – one which he hopes to bring back in a different role for the 109th iteration of the race.
Tony Stewart is starry-eyed about his return
Well, there can be no limit to ‘Smoke’s trail of glory. Tony Stewart fetched a fresh race victory this year, clinching the NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Top Fuel Dragster win at Las Vegas. That is the latest in a list of racing accomplishments that possibly no other racer can match. What stands out in that list in this topic is his 1997 IndyCar Series championship. Stewart’s 2001 ‘Double’ attempt is also jaw-dropping. He remains the only driver to complete the full 1100 miles at the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600. Stewart banked on his best finish of 5th at ‘The Great Spectacle of Racing’ in 1997. Although it has been over two decades since the Columbus native visited Indianapolis Motor Speedway for a duty, it is never too late.
Fox Sports recently announced that its debut race-day broadcast for the Indy 500 will include Tony Stewart. In lieu of this happy news, Stewart hailed the drivers who will battle it out in the upcoming race. He said, “In my career and my legacy in motorsports is that I’ve had my feet in every pool, it seems like, in every capacity. But it’s not about what we’re doing this weekend…Next weekend’s about the Indianapolis 500, it’s about the people. This year, all of us sat and watched the last couple of days of what these drivers went through and are going through. It is probably one of the toughest years I’ve seen in Indy for drivers driving these race cars.”
Roger Penske recently came under fire as two of his cars failed a technical inspection. The owner of the IndyCar Series was compelled to dismiss three of his loyal executives. Despite this turbulent turn of events, Tony Stewart still saluted the opportunity to work under Penske’s umbrella, along with Fox Sports. He said, “It’s going to be a blast to work with Fox again. I’ve had such a great relationship with them, have done NASCAR events with them…Contrary to everybody’s opinion, I am still a NASCAR fan. But it’s going to be an honor to be there and support the Indy 500, Roger Penske, and what he’s done to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and what IndyCar is doing. I’ve got friends over there – Marco Andretti, Conor Daly, James Hinchcliffe.”
Clearly, Tony Stewart is pumped about his reappearance at the Indy 500. What is more, he is also rooting for the NASCAR Cup Series phenomenon, who will be doing his second run.
Rooting for the ‘golden boy’
It has been a year since Tony Stewart announced the most tragic news of 2024. His 16-year-old legacy team, Stewart-Haas Racing, proceeded to wrap up operations. That set off a flurry of controversy about Stewart’s obligations and whether he could have done more. The team had achieved two championships and 70 Cup Series race victories, so its end seemed untimely. But that would hardly stop the three-time Cup Series champion from rooting for the arguably best driver at present, right? Kyle Larson, a 32-time race winner at NASCAR’s premier level, attempted the ‘Double’ last year. However, a four-hour rain delay and a speeding penalty stuttered his Indy 500 race. After finishing 18th, Larson headed to Charlotte, but could never start the race due to more rain.
This year, a lot of fans are vying for Kyle Larson‘s success, along with Tony Stewart. The only man ever to have completed the ‘Double’ suggested that Larson is perfect for the task. He said, “I think it’d be easy for Kyle to do that—matching the mileage, being on the lead lap both of those races. I feel like for Kyle, that’s very easy for him to accomplish. And I don’t think it’s out of the realm for him to beat what we did as far as performance…I think anybody that has a record, in the back of their mind doesn’t want it to be broken,” Stewart said. “But if it’s going to be broken, Kyle’s the guy I want to do it.”
Evidently, Tony Stewart has a lot to look forward to on his Fox Sports duties this weekend. Here is to hoping a dazzling Indy 500 race will unfold on Sunday!
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