Tony Stewart retired from full-time competition as a NASCAR driver at the end of the 2016 season, but the opportunity to drive race a NASCAR Xfinity Series car on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course has lured the three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion out of retirement. He’ll drive an entry fielded by his Stewart-Haas Racing team in the Xfinity Series race at the IMS road course on July 4.
“Everyone knows what Indy means to me, so I can’t think of a better place to race on Fourth of July weekend,” Stewart, a Columbus, Ind., native, said. “It’s going to be cool making history by turning left and right in a stock car at the Brickyard, and the racing will be full of action and contact. Any time you can drive any race car at the speedway is special, and you know I’m going for the win. The date is already circled on my calendar.”
This year’s Xfinity Series race at IMS will be the first on the road course, as the series moves from the facility’s oval course. Stewart has never raced on the Indy road course, either, even though he was a master of road courses throughout his NASCAR Cup Series career with eight wins across the Cup Series’ road course races at Watkins Glen International and Sonoma Raceway.
Stewart has 11 wins in 94-career Xfinity Series races, including his most recent series race in 2013 at Daytona International Speedway for Richard Childress Racing. In the Cup Series, Stewart won 49 races, including two on the IMS oval. He also is a three-time Cup Series championship driver and was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame earlier this year.
Information relating to Stewart’s car number, crew and sponsor for the Indianapolis race has not been released.
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