Read CNN’s Fast Facts about the life of race car driver and race track owner Tony Stewart, and learn more about the three-time Sprint Cup Series champion.
Birth place: Columbus, Indiana
Birth name: Anthony Wayne Stewart
Father: Nelson Stewart
Mother: Pam Stewart (now Boas)
Other Facts
Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion (2002,2005,2011).
Owns Eldora Speedway, a dirt race track near New Weston, Ohio.
Owner of Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) and co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR).
Earned the nickname « Smoke » because that’s what other drivers saw coming from his tires as he steered through turns on asphalt tracks. He is also referred to as the « Rushville Rocket, » « Tony the Tiger, » « The Columbus Comet » and « Big Orange. »
Timeline
1979 -Stewart wins his first competitive race in a go-kart in Westport, Indiana.
1980 – Wins his first championship at age eight in a go-kart.
1991 – Stewart is named United States Auto Club (USAC) Rookie of the Year.
1995 – Stewart is the first driver to win the Midget, the Sprint and the Silver Crown all in one season.
1996 – Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year.
1997 – Indy Racing League Champion.
February 14,1999 – Sprint Cup debut at the Daytona 500.
1999 – National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR)Winston Cup Series Rookie of the Year (now called the Sprint Cup Series).
November 2000 – Forms Tony Stewart Racing.
March 2001 – During a race at the Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee, Stewart bumps Jeff Gordon’s car on a pit road. He is fined $10,000 and placed on probation through August 2001.
