Tony Stewart

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/10/justice/tony-stewart-hits-driver/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Any NASCAR fans wish to chime in.

Personally I do not see why a driver of Stewart's caliber would be entered into such a race. But there are others that compete as well.

I have yet to decide whether or not I think there was malicious intent....I would like to think not. I think it's suspect that they boy was walking into 'traffic'. Almost asking to be run over.

This would be the largest part of the explanation as to why. It's all an adrenaline rush and unless your sponsors forbid it...they get it every way they can.

Stewart also owns a dirt race track in New Weston, Ohio, and has frequently raced sprint cars during the NASCAR season. He broke a leg last year in a crash that ended his racing season. He has raced the full NASCAR season this year but only returned to sprint cars in July.

Not being around the sport for a while (our local track closed in the early 80's) I would have thought that someone of Stewart's caliber would be mentor to others at the facility and not trying to win at all costs (still to be determined in this case). About a year ago he was involved in another aggressive race in this series.

Money is no object for him, let someone else have a crack at the big leagues.

Kind of like a MLB pitcher facing a HS senior.

we have a local dirt track, i went once about 20 years ago...certainly not my cup of tea and have not been to or watched a race since. However, there was a driver who collided with another and his car was put into the fence. He jumped from his car, grabbed a rather large pipe wrench (about 2 feet long) and began chasing the other guy around the track AS THE REMAINING CARS CONTINUED TO RACE. Certainly not what i would term "brightest bulb" by any sense of the imagination.

Seeing the video, it appeared as if Stewart tried to get close to him and gun it (certainly no intention of hitting him). However, when he gunned it, the car slid sideways a bit and clipped the other driver with his rear tire.

I think there is a criminal case to be made, but I doubt it will go anywhere.

Interesting that Tony was going to race in the whatever sprint cup race they ran yesteday. That's pretty classy.

he signed up for that race some time ago, not saturday night...news reports indicate he withdrew saturday night following the accident...

The film is pretty clear. The walked (actually charged) into a place he ahd no business being on a dirt track. Cant imagine that that Stewart will be found guilty of anything at all. Its sad for the family and for Stewart.

Keep in mind the film that is on YouTube is being shot from the near side of the track. What sounds like Tony accelerating, may very well be a car closer to the camera "gunning his motor".

What appears to be tony swerving toward the driver could be the reaction fo the car after the kid got under tony's back wheel pulling tony's car up the track.

Only Tony knows what really happened. Hopefully there is other film from other angles to show what could have happened.

I am not a fan of Tony, so i am not trying to defend him. He is known as a hot head (thus his nickname "smoke") so it is very possible he "Gunned" the motor to intimidate the kid. The Kid was on the "Slick groove" and way to close to oncoming traffic and may have slid under the back wheel.

I in no way believe Tony had intent to hit the kid.

Far as intent to race Sunday, when Tony made the announcement of racing Sunday, it was immediately after the vent, he at that point did not know the driver was dead. Upon learning that the driver was dead, Tony became visibly shaken and he withdrew fro the race.

Bottom line; The kid should have stayed in his car (Per the rules issued in pre race drivers meeting) until safety crews arrived. You are not to get out of your cars unless they are on fire. It is sad, but I believe NASCAR as a result of this will start enforcing penalties for violating that rule. I think they have turned their heads in the past, cause it made good drama for the sport.

Far as the racing these smaller events, it is not like a MLB player pitching a HS game. Although in Highschool if Tom Seaver would have come to a game to pitch I would have been thrilled to bat against him.

Tony and several other NASCAR drivers got their start in Sprint Car, (Ryan Newman, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Matt Kennseth, Kenny Wallace, etc) and they go back to race these races to bring interest to the sport and to bring money to the tracks. Many of them own these smaller tracks.

i haven't heard any of his endorsements have dropped him...guess if the tune of "no charges to be filed" changes that will as well

there's more than one Tom Seaver?

That is how it is spelled on the poster I got at WalMarts

Ask someone who has driven a sprint car and they will tell you that those things often are steered by accelerating. The things are designed to drift through corners. Apply the right amount of gas and that helps in maneuvering. So, for all the critics who say he accelerated into the guy. . .

One would think that a world class driver would know about that (Stewart). Is is possible that he did not see the other driver? Some claim that he should have because the driver before him did but did the other driver block his view?

Meaning for anyone who thinks he gunned it to hit the guy, he may have been gunning it to maneuver around the guy.

I love a good thread, but, respectfully, this one is about as relevant as any thread where someone does something idiotic and gets hurt or killed; followed by the other party being vilified.

Don't walk out onto a racetrack; you're liable to get runt over.

i can hardly wait for the Congressional Hearings on Sprint Car Racing Saftey to convene...the type of dirt allowed on the track, lighting used and how quickly they will switch from the gas-vapor to a brighter yet more efficient LED light, American manufactured tires...and to determine if any type of steroids, opiates, or stimulants are used by the racers...having seen Tony Stewart in person, I can rest assured that pituitary growth hormone is not being abused.

I wouldn't worry about them finding opiates. I imagine they will find. . . trace amounts. . . of Natural Light present in the system of the drivers and fans.

Saw the video and heard a bunch of witness stories last night. Visibility was not an issue. Tony is going to jail for min reckless homicide if not murder as it is totally clear he meant to at least hurt the other driver. A temper gets many men in deep trouble and one little laps in judgment can kill another man as this shows. I feel badly for both families but not for Tony, though I would like to, he will live with what he chose to do weather convicted or not.

Only Tony Stewart knows if he hit that kid, or got close to that kid on purpose, but I appreciate you convicting him already. And trust me, I'm no fan of TS, that's for sure, but condemning him before a true investigation by experts just doesn't seem right to me.

Seems like a pervasive issue in society today; once accused, it's almost irrelevant whether you're convicted since your name and picture are plastered on the news and papers with whatever accusation there is against you, but when one is found not guilty, that doesn't make the same kind of press. Just an observation.

It's not surprising in the world that we live in. I'm constantly seeing admonishments to "tweet us your opinion" about the guilt or innocence of some person......after giving a thumbnail abbreviation of some criminal case.....and then we the general public feel obligated to chime in.

The world we live in today tells us that our own opinion is king. I don't think it's that simple.

The sheriff tells another story. No Criminal Intent.

http://www.rochesterhomepage.net/story/d...-Bk2iImsA8IdHYw

unless he comes out and says "yeah, i ran him over on purpose" or "i was just goosing the car to scare him, i didn't mean to hit him" i don't think any DA or grand jury in the country will bring charges. While tragic, it is really stupid to charge a 2,000 pound car going 35 MPH on a slippery dirt track...

Driving a sprint car is like driving a boat, if you just turn the wheel nothing will happen. You have to accelerate to get the wheels to react to the turn but on dirt you often drift (that's what these cars are designed for) so what appears in the video was probably the only thing he could do to try and avoid the man.

Granted this is all speculation so who knows what the real intent was.

From the article linked :
"The investigation, however, is not over. Povero said his office is seeking witnesses and experts in this type of dirt track racing. The office has two videos of the crash and is seeking more. Povero said there is no timeline on the investigation."

"But some legal analysts say there's room for charges, depending on what the investigation shows. Jack Ford of CBS News said. "There's a possibility for something such as criminally negligent homicide. That means I didn't intend to kill anybody. I didn't even intend to hurt anybody but what I did is I ignored any obvious risk.""

I personally hope the witnesses I heard this morning are all wrong actually.

The "Witnesses" I heard IMHO are looking for the 15 minutes of fame. They were "Friends" making again IMHO emotional assumptions. There accounts do not match what are on video.

CBS, ESPN and other sport show attornis are correct, they can make a case, shoot every one could, but will it stick in court is another question.

As Happy said earlier, unless Tony says "yeah, i ran him over on purpose" or "i was just gassing the car to scare him, i didn't mean to hit him" they will not have a case.

The guy walked onto the track! It's sad that he was killed but what exactly did he think was going to happen?

Not to mention it was night and he was wearing black. IMHO, stupidity killed that young man. It's ironic that it was Tony's car at just that point, but the other guy should not have left his car. He was young, hot-headed, and made a poor choice.

This probably applies in the Missouri looting thread too but then the masses would have nothing to be in an uproar about.

But their poor choices are someone else s fault

Are we talking about the poor choices of the looters (a given) or the "poor choices" of the young man killed by the police? Does anyone know yet the details of his killing?

I will go with looters as they are the only ones that know the truth :sarcasm font:

Sorry to say MS but Sharpton is on his way (NY does the happy dance).

well, with Sharpton on the case, i'm sure the truth will come out quickly, much as in the Tawana Brawley case it came out...

another point of view

http://nypost.com/2014/08/12/cousin-of-driver-stewart-injured-last-year-wants-him-banned/

Cooper said it was clear to him that Stewart was trying to teach the younger driver a lesson by “stoning’’ him with mud, or getting close enough to spray dirt on him. Only things went horribly awry.

well, that is certainly unbiased reporting:

where he mowed down a rival

Not a fan of Tony Stewart, and only a casual fan of NASCAR. Someone quoted above, "...but what I did is I ignored any obvious risk." This quote is about Stewart. The one who ignored any obvious risk is Kevin Ward, Jr. He should have not have ran down the track. I would think Kevin Ward, Jr. will be among the 2014 Darwin award winners. Perhaps it is because Ward was so inexperienced that this happened. He should have taken a page out of Danica Patrick's playbook; just whine after the race about how the other guy forced you out.

No matter what the outcome, there will be nothing that can be done to ease the pain of both families. Young and hotheaded does not have to be Young and dead. I am sure Tony Stewart is reliving what happened and wishes things would have gone differently. Some things that happen cannot be undone, right or wrong.

The bummer for the sport of racing is that Tony has now for ever changed 2 peoples lives and their families at that one track as a result of putting other drivers in the wall.

A NASCAR champion he should be mentoring the younger drivers and not taking them into the wall.

I think that that is one my issues with this (we can debate the hitting of the driver out of the car until we are blue but only he know his intent) but did he really need to win that bad to put him (and the other girl) in the wall?

He didn't put the kid into the wall. The kid was in a space he should not have been. If you watch, Tony's car did not even touch the kids car.

The kid was trying to pass out of the groove. These Sprint cars slide around the turns and drift up. He (the kid) put himself in a bad place, trying to force a pass. Much like a race at bristol. If you are not pass the door going into the turn, you let up. The kid wasn't far enough pass tony to stay in the gas.

Again, an aggressive move that cost him his car.

A later aggressive move, cost him his life. (There is a pattern)

from what I saw (could have been the camera angle) it appeared that Stewart had already completed his slide and was on as much of a straight away as there is and the squeezed him into the wall

You are not going to convince these people otherwise. It seems clear they want to condemn him no matter what happens.

Its seems like strange logic to ask why someone would try their hardest to win a race they entered... but then again, in their mind it was his intent to cause the kid to wreck and then run him down.

Lets say that is the case, so what? It is legal and a legit strategy. Force him to tap the brakes.

the bummer is that some kid ran onto the track...barring that action, we wouldn't be having this conversation...if anyone forever changed the lives of multiple people, it was him...

I live here in upstate NY not to far from where Kevin Ward Jr. lived and this is taking over the news. I do not follow any kind of car racing even though it is on in my house most weekends. What I am trying to understand is why a professional of Tony Stewart's ranking was allowed or would want to compete at this level? It appears his skill and competitiveness was just too much and because of that and a bad choice on the young drivers part there is a death. It is all very sad.

Soccer,

Read this story and see if it helps understand.

Bottom line, Tony likes to race, he owns small tracks and supports this type of racing. He is not the only NASCAR driver to do this. He does this to promote the sport is small towns.

http://www.heraldbulletin.com/breakingnews/x864267534/Tony-Stewart-felt-at-home-at-small-town-tracks

Personally I am not condemning him or at any conclusion at this point. (I could be a juror) I am just trying to understand what led up to the kid getting out of the car,it was also stated that they have had issues in the past as well. As for the kid going out into the track is clear that that is what caused his death but before we condemn him Stewart did the same in a NASCAR televised event and threw his helmet at another driver.

And if he is trying to support the sport as the reason for racing there he would also be supportive of the other drivers.

As for the aggressive style (both) it appears to be part of the sport.

They had a great report asking why we allow behavior in a sporting event that would otherwise be illegal and are so OK with it on CNN. I changed my mind on if Tony was "wrong" to put them in the wall but I love racing of all kinds, I have loved the sport since I was a kid and I probably always will, so any thing that puts a black eye on the sport, I will have to admit, gets me going.

DD Regs, thank you for the link, yes it does help me understand, as I watch my local news to see standing room only at the funeral.
Let's hope people learn from this and it never happens again.

let's get some facts straight, please...

1. car racing is not a sport, it is a competition
2. rules of the competition say stay in your car unless it is on fire or you are in serious danger of worse injury
3. kid got out of his car, with no fire and no threat of serious injury
4. kid runs at a vehicle traveling an estimated 35 miles per hour and is struck by the car
5. bumping of cars while competing for track space is within the rules of competition (called swapping paint by most)
6. car racing is a competition, not a sport
7. people who participate in professional level competitions are the most Type A personalities, ultra competitive, and often their quest for the competition overrides their common sense. this competitive drive is what got them to this level, and it is what makes the competition entertaining.

NASCAR has new rule to keep drivers in cars under yellow

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nas...rd-jr/14100643/

If you believe USA today it was just a guideline. Now it is a rule with no penalty. (seems like they want emotions to be shown in the sport of NASCAR Much like steroids in baseball in the 90s, Hockey, and flopping in soccer)

If the driver wasn't Tony Stewart, few people here would even know the accident happened. If the driver wasn't Tony Stewart, no one here would be presumptuous enough to suggest he did it on purpose.

Stewart's like others (such as Kyle and Kurt) a bad boy persona as the result of a cultivated effort. I'm not a fan of any of them, but my world is not simplistic enough to think that would automatically make any of them guilty of intentionally killing someone.

The kid, bless his heart, was emulating his heroes, but it wasn't a paved track and it wasn't daylight. He miscalculated the risk and I feel horrible for him and for those he left behind.

Well said Ken.

I know nothing about racing but Nate Ryan, guy that wrote the article and covers NASCAR for USA Today, is my cousin.

I dont think many, if any, think Stewart meant to kill him. But he does have a history of doing macho, potentially dangerous stuff when he feels disrespected. That's a plausible scenario for what happened here-basically vehicular manslaughter-we'll see what comes from the investigation.

Yeah, Ware did something stupid, but that doesn't mean if Stewart escalates it by doing something stupid himself he gets off the hook.

Aside from Marcus Ambrose, which drivers do not have that history?

Stewart isn't on "the hook." He's only being accused by 1) people whose emotions are raw and 2) those who were sitting in row TT on the opposite side of the track, 3) those watching videos on U Tube. Not by other drivers. Not by in-car cameras. Not by NASCAR officials. Not by the Sheriff (whose poise is incredible given the size of the town).

Doesn't excuse it. The analogy i'd use is beanballs in baseball. eventually, someone's gonna stare at a home run too long and get hit in the head and die. Because beanballs are a part of baseball culture wont excuse it. They're still taking a chance. If you get unlucky and it goes horribly wrong, you get punished. Just like a barfight. I bet 95% of fistfights just end with guys getting thrown out of the bar. But you shove a guy, he falls and happens to hit his head and die--welp, you just committed manslaughter.



That's my point. IF he acted recklessly (and that's still up in the air, but IF he did) then Ware's mistake shouldn't excuse his actions.

Interesting Op Ed.

http://ondirtracingnews.com/?p=6836

Very informative

everyone is wrong

That I can agree with.

The most knowledgeable, analytical piece I've read on the subject, but perhaps too detailed for the general public.

Many of the others I've read seem to paraphrase the Queen of Hearts:

'No, no!' said the Queen. 'Sentence first - verdict afterwards.'

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/motor-racing

saw a blurb scroll on NBCSN this weekend that Stewart was retiring from auto racing...no idea if accurate...

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/878722-t...article-is-fake

The latest: Tony will not be charged, and Kevin Ward was high on marijuana that night on the track.

Fox news link, or, if you prefer: CNN news link

As the official NASCAR spokesman said, "There are no winners in tragedy." How true.

I read one of the articles, I think it was the Times,and they did not want to release the actual findings of the grand jury, just that no charges will be filed and the kid was high so his judgement was clouded.
So does that mean it is ok to run over people that are high because their judgment is clouded?

don't race while high and don't get out of your car after a crash (unless you have to to save your life)

'Zactly!

It was an accident. It is too bad, but these things happen when you get out of your car on a race track while cars are still driving on it.

Right? I'm not sure why him smoking pot matters. He messed up going onto the track, but the question was always whether Tony Stewart tried to buzz him and got too close. (Assuming it wasn't a full on purpose hit).

Smoking pot matters when it clouds your judgment and you walk out in front of or too near a 600hp racecar that's difficult to control, especially while it's riding on a slippery track.

Now, do I think TS may have gotten too close to prove something to this stupid kid? Quite possibly, but I think the greater amount of negligence is on the kid smoking pot then driving a racecar. That's just plum dumb, may he rest in peace.

There was a statement by one of the grand jury members who stated that a review of the evidence (film) showed no change in the direction of Tony's car until after impact by the rear tire.

Strange that we now have the possibility of an entire state legally driving around impaired by pot. whose fault will all the crashes be? O_o

the car's

fully automatic assault cars!

I wanted one of those Google cars with no steering wheel so I could practice my not in control panic.