Photo – Jerry Markland/Getty Images
Tony Stewart has decided to return to racing this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. The Aug. 31 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at the 1.54-mile oval will mark Stewart’s first start since Aug. 3 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway.
Stewart sat out the past three races at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International, Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn and Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway after the tragic accident on Aug. 9 involving Kevin Ward Jr. during a sprint car feature at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park.
At 1 p.m. EDT on Friday in the infield media center at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Stewart was available to the press, and joining him was Stewart-Haas Racing executive vice president Brett Frood.
Tony Stewart gave an emotional and heartfelt statement to the media.
“This has been one of the toughest tragedies I’ve ever had to deal with both professionally and personally. This is something that will definitely affect my life forever. This is a sadness and a pain that I hope no one ever has to experience in their life.
“With that being said, I know that the pain and the mourning that Kevin Ward’s family and friends are experiencing is something that I can’t possibly imagine.I want Kevin’s father, Kevin Sr., and his mother Pam, and his sisters Christi, Kayla, Katelyn, to know that every day I’m thinking about them and praying for them. The racing community is a large family, as you guys know. Everyone’s saddened with this tragedy.
“I want to thank all my friends and family for their support through this tough emotional time, and the support from the NASCAR community, my partners, all of our employees, it’s been overwhelming. I’ve taken the last couple weeks off out of respect for Kevin and his family, and also to cope with the accident in my own way. It’s given me the time to think about life and how easy it is to take it for granted.
“I miss my team, my teammates. I miss being back in the racecar. I think being back in the car this week with my racing family will help me get through this difficult time.
“I also understand that all of you have many questions and want a lot of answers, however I need to respect the ongoing investigation process and cannot answer and address the questions at this time. Emotionally I’m not sure if I could answer them anyway.
“We’re here to race this weekend, and I appreciate your respect. There will be a day when I can sit here and answer the questions. Thank you.”
Following is NASCAR’s statement from Steve O’Donnell, Executive Vice President and Chief Racing Development Officer
“Tony Stewart has received all necessary clearances required to return to all racing activities, and therefore is eligible to compete this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway. NASCAR has remained in constant contact with his race team, and we will stay very close to this situation as Stewart returns to competition.”
NASCAR President Mike Helton took part in a media availability in the Atlanta Motor Speedway media center on Friday at 2 p.m. ET. Helton answered the question on many people’s mind – Will Stewart get a waiver in the Chase eligibility rules?
“After evaluating the circumstances around this occurrence, we’ve come to the conclusion that Tony would be eligible to participate in the Chase if he were to earn a spot in it”
Stewart now sits, 26th in the series point standings and still needs to win at least one of the next two races at Atlanta or Richmond to become eligible for Chase contention. Stewart also needs to stay in the top-30 in point standings.
The last ten races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup begins at Chicagoland Speedway on September 14th.
The next Sprint Cup Series race is Sunday, August 31st at Atlanta Motor Speedway with a green flag at 7:30 pm ET. Television coverage by ESPN begins at 7 pm ET with their pre-race show.