People have been wondering each week before a NASCAR Sprint Cup race if this would be the week that Tony Stewart would choose to return behind the wheel of the No. 14. It’s not just NASCAR race fans but race fans in general and the public. I kind of felt in my heart it might be Atlanta. I can’t say why and I almost felt like making the three hour drive to the track but for personal reasons, I can’t at this time.
My heart goes out to the Ward family and always will for the loss of their son in this tragic accident but my heart has been with Stewart since this happened. There is absolutely no way he ran over that young man intentionally and who knows whether he will be able to continue racing after Saturday night. Only Stewart will know. I wonder if he will ever be able to race an Outlaw car again or if he will continue to own El Dorado? Again, only Stewart will know.
Stewart will talk to the media at Atlanta at 1 p.m. ET. This is surely going to be very very hard for him to do. I would not want to be in his position but I will support him and pray for the parents of Kevin Ward. I feel this is the best thing for Stewart to do and that is to get back to the track and around his family, his co-drivers. We all know Stewart is not the only one with a temper.
It angers me that every picture with articles that have been written about this tragic accident has Stewart looking like an angry man. Stewart is a hurt man right now and this is something that he will always have with him as anyone involved in such an accident would.
The drivers are supporting his return to the track even though it is still an ongoing investigation. I support him returning to begin his healing. NASCAR is a family, the fans are a family. I have read negative and ugly comments within the first two weeks and I call those people NOT race fans. Race fans do not say what they did. A true race fan shows support and empathy for the Ward family and in another way for Stewart and his fans.
I am not new to racing by any means. I have been a fan since I was a kid and that was over 40 years ago. I have worked around racing at the tracks and have seen how close these drivers are with each other. I have seen how they support each other like a family.
I hope and pray Atlanta will begin the healing for Stewart. He has a long ways to go and he is the only one who knows it and can deal with it. I pray he is treated well by the fans at the race Saturday night. None of us ever know when we might be put in the same situation. Welcome back Stewart. I and thousands of other race fans welcome and support you.
