JOLIET, Ill. - As NASCAR prepares to christen the new Chicagoland Speedway this weekend, I can't help but look out with admiration upon this beautiful 1.5-mile D-shaped oval, its roughly 75,000 seats, the newly laid sod and the hundreds of workers busily attending to last-minute details to get the place ready for its official opening Thursday.
This facility is destined to become one of the true gems on the Winston Cup circuit.
As I scan the surroundings, I can't help but get a bit wistful, thinking how lucky I have been to cover sports for the last 27 years, particularly the last 15, which have been dedicated primarily to motorsports. Living just 20 minutes from the new track, I also am thankful that NASCAR has finally made it to my backyard. It's about time.
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| Tony Stewart unleashed his frustrations on Kenny Irwin's car at Martinsville in October, 1999., |
Others, however, don't seem so thankful. They throw tantrums and can't control their tempers. I'm talking about people like Tony Stewart.
Time and again, we've seen Stewart display childish antics and unprofessional behavior. The most recent incident came after Saturday night's Pepsi 400. First, Stewart had to be physically restrained from going after NASCAR Winston Cup director Gary Nelson after Stewart's No. 20 Pontiac was blackflagged in the closing stages of the race for his driving below the yellow line in the turns at Daytona International Speedway.
NASCAR's decision dropped Stewart 20 places in the final race results and cost him 65 valuable championship points.
Then, still simmering a short while later, and because he didn't like a reporter's question, Stewart struck out in a fit of rage, knocking the reporter's tape recorder out of his hand and then kicking it.
Earlier this year, Stewart pulled another bonehead move by spinning Jeff Gordon around entering pit road at the end of a race, an action that looked funny on the surface, but could have seriously hurt someone. Stewart is still on NASCAR probation for that episode, and could face suspension or even further penalties Wednesday.
Don't get me wrong. I am not knocking Stewart for the sake of knocking him. I like him. He's one of the most talented young drivers today.
I laud Stewart for racing -- and racing well, at that -- in this year's Indianapolis 500, and then doubling up with another high finish hours later in the Coca-Cola 600 in Concord, N.C. There's no question Stewart has what it takes to be an outstanding driver ... except for his temper, which he just can't seem to control.
NASCAR has fined and penalized Stewart for some of his prior incidents, but how much more of this will we have to be subjected to? Granted, Stewart's temper is usually ignited from frustration and his competitive spirit. The guy doesn't like to lose, plain and simple. But there are close to 50 other full-time drivers on the circuit that don't like to lose, either. You don't see them getting angry or performing bush stunts like Stewart.
If they lose, they lose and forget it. If NASCAR hammers them with a penalty, they accept it and go on. They don't dwell on what might have been; rather, they move on to the next entry on their dance card. They don't verbally attack members of the media -- which can't necessarily be said of the other way around -- and they're usually more than accommodating with their time.
Stewart is far from being that way. Quite frankly, he needs to have someone take him aside and give him a good talking to. He has to realize he's only hurting himself -- and his future.
Do you honestly think a stoic, staid team owner like Joe Gibbs will continue to put up with Stewart's behavior? When he was coaching the NFL's Washington Redskins to three Super Bowls, Gibbs did not tolerate outlandish behavior from any of his players. It was his way or the highway.
That's something Stewart seems to have forgotten. Perhaps he just needs to remember what having a temper has cost another driver in terms of endorsements, sponsorships and competitiveness.
Robby Gordon comes to mind. Gordon used to have just as fierce of a temper as Stewart's, but he finally realized his temper was his own undoing. It was the reason sponsors went away and why team owners released him.
Gordon has grown up and matured considerably over the last couple of years, particularly when he was forced to run his own team. He saw the reality of what having a professional demeanor meant in terms of attention, and more importantly, dollars and cents. He saw that any negative actions on his part translated into lost dollars and lost opportunities.
Stewart would do himself a world of good by waking up fast and learning from Robby Gordon's experiences. If he continues to act first and think second, he's going to be in for a rude awakening. He's going to find himself no longer driving for an owner like Gibbs. He'll be without a multimillion dollar sponsorship. He's also going to alienate reporters and become hated by the fans.
There's a wide disparity between a driver being hated by fans because of their loyalty to another and their disdain for a driver because of his personality. Look at those who hate Jeff Gordon. It's because he wins so much and is the proverbial clean-cut All-American boy. But that dislike is borne from a preference for other drivers rather than vitriolic hatred of a guy because he's just mean.
I hope Stewart wakes up quickly. He is one of the luckiest guys on earth. He makes a tremendous salary and has arguably one of the best owner-sponsorship packages in racing. The Rushville Rocket is adored by fans, too. And, having just turned 30 years old, Stewart can continue his career for another 15 or 20 years.
But to succeed, Stewart has to get a handle on himself. He has to learn to control his aggression and his anger. Stewart has so much to lose. He's led a relatively charmed life as a racer so far, but it would be a shame if he lost it all because he can't keep his temper under control.
