Q&A: Tony Stewart.

Saturday, 11th February 2006

As he prepares to defend his 2005 Nextel Cup Championship, Tony Stewart talks NASCAR, his holidays, or lack thereof, Daytona, the Bud Shootout, if he can remember when it starts, sprint cars, cell phones and girls.

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TONY STEWART:
You know the answer to that. You've been here long enough to know that.

Q.
Did you celebrate much with the team after winning the championship?

TONY STEWART:
No, not really. I mean, basically just 'cause I didn't have a chance to do it with the team. We had one night in New York where we all got together and we were able to go out and have fun and celebrate. Aside from that, it was back to work full-time again, you know, like I said, with racetrack stuff, stuff with the team, appearances, all that.

You know, like I said, it's turned into a full-fledged 12-month-out-of-the-year job now.

Q.
Last year you changed a lot of things. You're working with the team in a different way, getting along better. Do you feel like you're a different person now than you were before? Do you think that has changed you?

TONY STEWART:
Didn't we talk about that all year last year?

Q.
Yeah, but we're going into another year.

TONY STEWART:
You think as soon as the calendar year changed, all of a sudden the moon and the stars were going to go a different direction?

Q.
No.

TONY STEWART:
Okay, there's your answer.

Q.
What are the challenges to a driver at this level, with all the impossible obligations you have, but also the potential opportunities with the personal appearances? Seems likes it would be easy for a driver to become more of a celebrity and lose touch with being a driver, so many things out there grabbing at you.