At the end of the second Heat at South Boston Speedway, the notorious wrath of Tony Stewart ended up being drawn out by a certain young and eager SRX driver. The result was a lesson that everyone in the field should have known: No one wants that Smoke from Tony.
After getting into it with Ernie Francis Jr. in Heat 2, Stewart was spurred into action in the main event, swapping the lead with Marco Andretti before taking control and holding off Greg Biffle to win the second race of the SRX season at South Boston Speedway. Stewart's victory marked his third win in SRX, the most of any driver in the series' young history.
Stewart prevailed in a spirited, physical race that featured some bent fenders and quite a few feelings -- including Stewart's -- that were knocked out of shape
SRX at South Boston results
- #14 - Tony Stewart
- #69 - Greg Biffle
- #18 - Bobby Labonte
- #39 - Ryan Newman
- #06 - Helio Castroneves
- #6 - Tony Kanaan
- #5 - Ernie Francis Jr.
- #98 - Marco Andretti
- #1 - Ryan Hunter-Reay
- #26 - Peyton Sellers
- #15 - Michael Waltrip (DNF)
- #3 - Paul Tracy (DNF)
While slowing down to avoid a spinning Paul Tracy in Heat 2, Francis ran into Stewart as he turned down the track while driving into the smoke in front of him. Francis' move incensed Stewart, and the two had a heated conversation during the intermission between the Heats and main event. After the scuffle, Stewart delivered an ultimatum to the rest of the field.
"They've pissed off Uncle Tony right now. So they're about ready to get a dose of it that they don't want," Stewart said. "Trust me, I know every dirty trick and got it in my bag. I mean, when you're following somebody and a guy is on the outside, and as soon as he gets clear he just turns down across -- that's the dumbest s--t you can do, I swear to God.
"It's like, I'm just done playing nice with everybody. Anybody that touches me, I'm touching back times five. I'm just done jacking with some of these clowns."
Stewart wound up starting second in the main event, and he would spend much of the 100-lap feature swapping the lead with Andretti before Andretti spun out of contention after an ill-advised crossover move on Biffle went wrong. After a flurry of cautions in the second half of the event, Stewart was able to build a small gap on Biffle and claim the checkered flag.
The optics suggested that the run-in between Stewart and Francis lit a fire under the defending SRX champion. However, Stewart stated post-race that his primary motivation came from the reaction of South Boston's fans each time he took the lead.
"It's not like I need much motivation, but when you've got the fans of South Boston cheering like that every time you get the lead, by God you're not gonna let them down," he said.
Stewart was hardly the only driver whose temper was tested. The incident between Stewart and Francis occurred just after Tracy was spun out of the race lead by longtime rival Helio Castroneves. While Tracy made his discontent known ("I don't know if he ran out of brakes or ran out of brains," he said), Tracy was taken out in a crash during the main event before he was able to exact any payback.
Michael Waltrip, meanwhile, made absolutely sure to get his. After being spun into the outside wall by Ryan Hunter-Reay, Waltrip retaliated against Hunter-Reay under the ensuing caution, taking exception to the way the former IndyCar champion had raced him.
"I got dumped," Waltrip said. "Just halfway down the back he got into me and never let me go ... He's gonna hear from Uncle Mike. We're not having a beer together, A. But B, that's just not right. That's not how you race.
"And I didn't want to tear up his car, I just wanted to send a message. So hopefully message received. But I'm gonna wait around and have a chat with him."
After SRX's IndyCar contingent controlled the season opener, the top four at South Boston all hailed from the ranks of NASCAR drivers in SRX. Bobby Labonte and Ryan Newman finished third and fourth, with Castroneves the first of the IndyCar drivers in fifth. Local All-Star Peyton Sellers had a disappointing night, finishing 10th in his own territory.
The Camping World SRX Series continues next Saturday night with the third race of the season at Stafford Motor Speedway in Stafford Springs, Conn. The race marks SRX's first return to any racetrack, as SRX hosted the series' inaugural race there last year. Coverage will be on CBS with streaming live on Paramount+.
