NASCAR: Who’s Hot And Who’s Not Heading Into Pure Michigan 400
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Tony Stewart
When I originally mapped out this weeks Hot and Not piece I had tabbed Tony Stewart to be in the “Not” section. My reasoning for having him there was not necessarily because of what took place on that dirt track in Upstate New York but instead because of what happened as a result of it.
Stewart sat out of last weekends race at Watkins Glen and as a result he will now miss the chase. While I agree with him sitting out, his fans know the passion that he has for racing and it’s safe to assume that he knew he was ending his quest to win a fourth championship when he decided to not race.
Missing the chase is obviously the least important of the ramifications of the tragedy that took place in Upstate New York. Stewart will have to live with what happened on that fateful night for the rest of his life and that is something that I would imagine few people truly understand. I cannot imagine what the driver of the No. 14 machine is going through nor would I want to ever be in a position where I would have to do so.
The third layer of the Stewart fallout is the tremendous amount hate that has been directed towards him since the night of the accident. Pundits and anti-fans have seemingly come out of the woodwork in an effort to condemn Stewart for his actions suggesting that they were with intent or that he should be in jail as a result. A situation like this would be difficult for anyone but the outcry of negativity towards Stewart has been appalling to say the least. Couple the lack of fan and outsider support with the fact that he as not been 100 percent cleared when it comes to criminal charges and you have an impossible to deal with situation becoming that much more impossible.
Although I feel that Stewart could have been in the “Not” section this week, I simply didn’t feel it was appropriate but still felt that his situation should be addressed. Lastly and most importantly, we here at Beyond The Flag extend our thoughts and prayers to all involved in this tragic accident.