Tony Stewart goes into stands to address fan at Chili Bowl
Tony Stewart went in the grandstands at the Chili Bowl indoor dirt track race on Friday night to have an up-close discussion with a fan at the event.
The discussion was captured on video by many people based off the number of phones pointed towards the two in this clip below.
You can also hear fans chanting “Tony! Tony! Tony!” towards the three-time Sprint Cup Series champion.
This video posted to Facebook and also published to Motorsport.com is from a proximity much closer to Stewart and the fan that he was confronting. Stewart has a smile on his face until the fan attempts to push away his hands. Security then pushes the fan into his seat and Stewart moves closer to talk to the fan. The Tulsa World posted a photo to its website Friday evening of Stewart wearing the same shirt he’s wearing in the videos.
We’re probably not the only people asking “What the hell?” after seeing what transpired. The video posted to Facebook also referenced the fan allegedly giving Stewart the finger on Friday night. But NASCAR drivers deal with fan trash talk on a regular basis during the season – negative comments and obscene gestures from fans aren’t exactly a rare occurrence.
The fan Stewart talked to Friday could have severely crossed a line; though no matter the circumstances it’s still a head-scratcher to see a driver affected enough by the comments to go have a word with the fan. And especially for Stewart.
While Stewart hasn’t always shied away from confrontation throughout his driving career, he has been coping with the aftermath of his August 2014 dirt track accident with Kevin Ward Jr. The incident happened when Ward got out of his car to confront Stewart after hitting the wall while the two were racing together. As Ward went to confront Stewart on track, he was struck by Stewart’s car and killed.
Stewart was not charged criminally regarding the incident and the Ward family filed a civil lawsuit in August.
Stewart isn’t driving in the indoor midget car race in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The two-time Chili Bowl winner and owner of Eldora Speedway, a dirt track in Ohio that hosts the Camping World Truck Series, is helping with track prep at the event.
Stewart hasn’t driven in a dirt track race since the Ward incident and said Monday he was going to race on dirt again after his retirement from the Sprint Cup Series following the 2016 season. His trip up into the grandstands may also not have been the weirdest incident of the night at the Chili Bowl. A driver was disqualified for impersonating another one. Seriously.
– – – – – – –
Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
