![]() A lap later, Ward had climbed out of his car and was gesturing angrily toward Stewart's car, which struck Ward. Stewart and Ward were battling for track position when Stewart spun out Ward's car and sent him into the wall. He once took a swing at fellow driver Robby Gordon, and he threw a helmet at Matt Kenseth's car during a race.īut of all the controversy he'd faced, there's been nothing like this. Such as the time Tony knocked the headphones off a track official at a midget race, or when he kicked a reporter's tape recorder or shoved a photographer at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2002, leading him to agree to anger-management counseling. But Schofield also has seen footage and read accounts of the incidents that have cemented Stewart's reputation as hot-tempered. He waited patiently for a table, even signed autographs. "Tony is a race car driver that cares for people."ĭown at The Garage Pub & Grill, Stewart's good-guy reputation among locals didn't quiet the debate about Stewart's intent in the fatal incident.īartender Mike Schofield said Stewart conducted himself impeccably during a handful of visits to his restaurant over the past two years. ![]() "Tony's done so much for so many different organizations," Franke said, adding that Stewart has sponsored a bevy of young drivers. The Tony Stewart Foundation, created in 2003, is active with several causes, especially helping injured drivers, chronically ill children and abused animals. In a city of 45,429 residents, Stewart is well-known - as a fiery competitor and a do-gooder. In 2005, Stewart, by then a multimillionaire, moved back into his own childhood home in a middle-class neighborhood two blocks from where he went to high school.Įven after he moved into a 15,000-square foot, custom-built log cabin that sits on 400 acres of wooded land, Stewart still dropped by the Dairy Queen to get his chili dogs and milkshakes.Īnd last year, Stewart's charitable foundation helped pay for a racing-theme playground in the neighborhood in which Stewart grew up. They also know their hometown hero has an edge and a history of confrontational behavior. Some things they know - positive things about Stewart's character that they say have gone largely unnoticed, such as his giving spirit. Ontario County (N.Y.) Sheriff Philip Povero has said twice there is no evidence at this time that indicates a crime has been committed.īut this week, in the tragedy's aftermath, Franke and others grappled with the saga. Only Tony knows."įranke is among the legion of Stewart loyalists who say it's unthinkable the three-time NASCAR champion acted with malicious intent in the death of 20-year-old Kevin Ward Jr., killed in upstate New York Saturday night when the car Stewart was driving hit Ward, who had exited his wrecked car but remained on the track. "We don't know what was going on in his mind. ![]() "That's totally unfair," said Franke, who became Stewart's first sponsor when Tony was riding go-karts at the 4-H Fairgrounds as an 8-year-old. ![]() Tony Stewart used his car like a weapon, that's what fellow racer Stewart Friesen said in an interview with ESPN. He was recalling what he heard someone say on the radio the other day about Tony Stewart - the celebrated native son who grew up here, 45 minutes south of Indianapolis, and for decades has visited Franke's joint for chili dogs and chocolate milkshakes. The lunch crowd was thinning at Dairy Queen, and longtime owner Bob Franke looked distressed. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |