Tony Stewart: The New, New Bristol

Back in the day, Tony Stewart loved Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway. He won his second career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series pole at Bristol in just his 23rd Sprint Cup start. He won the 2001 night race in just his sixth visit to the .533-mile concrete oval. And in those first six races, Stewart led a total of 484 laps.

But in the six races after that lone Bristol win, Stewart’s best finish was 15th. He finally rebounded in 2005 when he finished third in the spring race and eighth in the night race, but that year of consistency, which coincidentally was the year Stewart secured the second of his three Sprint Cup championships, gave way to a feast-or-famine run at Bristol that has yet to subside.

On three occasions in the 13 races between 2006 and the Sprint Cup Series’ last visit to Bristol in March, Stewart dominated at Bristol by leading the most laps, but only had finishes of 12th (spring 2006), 35th (spring 2007) and 14th (spring 2008) to show for his efforts. In that same span, there have been only three top-10 finishes.

As Stewart’s fortunes at Bristol have changed, so too has Bristol. The bullring in Thunder Valley received a new concrete surface complete with variable banking in time for the 2007 night race, and in 2010, 160 feet of SAFER Barrier at the exits of turns two and four were added in time for the spring race, which created a different transition off the corners.

Another change greets drivers for Saturday night’s Irwin Tools Night Race, as the banking in the upper groove of the racetrack has been reduced to the same degree as the middle of the track surface, effectively eliminating the third groove as a viable option. This will create tighter racing, the kind of which was prevalent when Stewart first found success at Bristol.

The retro feel of the new, new Bristol will hopefully suit Stewart and his No. 14 Mobil 1/Office Depot Chevrolet. It needs to, for Stewart comes into Bristol reeling a bit after a 32nd-place finish last Sunday at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn and a 19th-place finish two weeks ago at Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International that has dropped the three-time and reigning Sprint Cup champion from sixth to ninth in points.

Stewart isn’t in danger of missing the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, as his three wins already this season put him in a tie with fellow three-time race victors Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski for the No. 1 seed in the Chase, which begins Sept. 16 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill. Nonetheless, all drivers want to start the Chase strong, and Stewart is no exception.

With a Bristol that’s gone retro, Stewart sees opportunity – the same opportunity he saw at Bristol more than a decade ago.

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