“I don’t see an end”: Tony Stewart rules out a retirement from racing in near future

Tony Stewart opened up about his future in racing in an interview with Dale Earnhardt Jr. He spoke about what all leads to drivers retiring, but he doesn’t see that happening to himself.

Stewart is remembered for the combination of his titles, his fighting character and his incredible impact as a driver, a team owner and a promoter in the world of NASCAR, IndyCar, and grassroots racing. Till now, no one has been able to surpass his record of conquering major motorsports titles in both NASCAR and IndyCar.

The legendary driver took the spotlight with his winning performances in midget, sprint, and USAC Silver Crown divisions, where he successfully sealed the 1995 USAC "Triple Crown". As a driver, he was crowned champion of the NASCAR Cup Series three times (2002, 2005, 2011).

Besides that, the 2011 championship was also his first as a co-owner--a scenario that has not been seen since Alan Kulwicki in 1992. Stewart claimed 49 Cup Series wins and became one of the most competitive and versatile drivers of NASCAR.

On Dale Jr. Download, Tony Stewart said:

"I don't see an end anytime near in the near future...I think it's going to be just like it was for you and I with being full-time cup drivers. We love that excitement of getting to the track Thursday night and doing what we do for three days a week, but there's just that morning you wake up and you're like, I think I've had enough. Not because you don't love it and you don't like it, just you physically and mentally have to make a change."

Tony Stewart has been competing in the NHRA Top Fuel this season and is in contention for the title as the season heads into the playoffs.

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Tony Stewart shared an update after fuel leak setback at NHRA playoffs

Tony Stewart faced a challenging sequence during the NHRA playoffs, beginning with a violent crash in the Countdown opener at Maple Grove Raceway. In that incident, rival Doug Kalitta’s car suffered a catastrophic wheel failure that sent it across lanes, striking Stewart’s dragster and flipping it onto its side.

Stewart was left briefly unconscious but, along with Kalitta, escaped with only minor injuries. Despite the crash and the physical toll, Stewart remained in championship contention, just 19 points behind Kalitta. He wrote on X:

"We rolled up for Q1, did the burnout, and identified an erratic cylinder on the backup. My crew chief, Neal, made the right call to shut the car down and skip the run rather than yard-sale a #HEMI. Back in the pit, the hunt for the culprit was on, but no dice." "We couldn't identify what caused cylinder #2 to turn into a fire-breathing dragon at idle RPM. That forced us to build from the block up and get things turned around for the hero session," he added.

The following week at zMax Dragway for the Carolina Nationals, Tony Stewart encountered another setback during Top Fuel qualifying. A fuel leak caused one cylinder to fail and catch fire during Friday’s session, forcing his crew to shut down the car before the Q1 run to avoid catastrophic engine damage.

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Edited by Tushar Bahl