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Tony Stewart doesn't blame Ryan Newman for lashing out in frustration at Richmond
Tony Stewart is publicly determined to not let the inflammatory things Ryan Newman said about him at Richmond affect his mindset for the Chase.
Stewart and Newman tangled in the final quarter of Saturday’s race. Newman made contact with Stewart — not the first time the two had touched while racing for position during the race — and Stewart put a backstretch-long block on him before the two finally crashed.
After the accident, Newman made a veiled reference to Stewart hitting and killing Kevin Ward at a sprint car race in 2014 and called the three-time champion “bipolar” while encouraging fans to search Stewart’s name with the word “anger.”
“I haven’t heard anything from him,” Stewart said Thursday at NASCAR’s Chase media day. You know, it’s like I said, it would be easy to take it personal. But, I mean, that was the deciding factor in his season, whether he was going to make the Chase or not.”
Newman entered the Richmond race – the final race before the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup – 22 points out of the playoff field. The wreck ruined his chances of making the 16-driver postseason field.
“We’ve been friends a long time,” Stewart said. “We were teammates. I respect him a lot. It’s a high-pressure moment. I mean, I’ve been in those, too. I’ve said things. Whether he meant to say it or not, whether he believes it or not still, that’s up to him. But that moment is a hard moment for any of us. It’s tough in that scenario.
“So, you know, I can’t blame him.”
Stewart wasn’t charged with a crime in the August 2014 incident with Ward at a dirt track in upstate New York. A grand jury ruled there was no evidence of a criminal act.
Newman drove for Tony Stewart from 2009-2013. Stewart said he expects the two drivers to meet at the NASCAR hauler Friday at Chicago as activities get underway for Sunday’s first race of the Chase. He also added that anyone wanting to focus on the conflict between the two over the next two weeks is “going to miss a lot because you’re going to be wasting your time on something that’s not even relevant.”
Neither driver was publicly reprimanded for the incident when NASCAR released its penalty report Wednesday.
The incident with Newman was the second time in as many races that Stewart was involved in an on-track tiff with another driver. At Darlington, Stewart sent Brian Scott spinning as the two drivers raced down the backstretch. Scott was to Stewart’s outside coming off turn 2 and Stewart’s car went to the right before Scott went sliding to the left.
When asked if he’ll retaliate if someone runs into him during the Chase, Stewart said patience will prevail now that the playoffs have begun. That’s probably a good idea. Stewart is retiring at the end of the season and undoubtedly doesn’t want to lose his final title chance because of an on-track disagreement.
“You got to remember, even in this first phase, there’s half of the field that’s not even a factor in what the 16 of us are trying to do,” Stewart said. “So you got to sit there and race a little different. When you’re locked into the Chase and you’re where you need to be in points, couldn’t get knocked down, it’s a little easier to let the other stuff be a distraction.”
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
