Stewart's opinions worth looking into
By Jim Huber, Turner Sports Interactive
October 30, 2001
5:27 PM EST (2227 GMT)
From the outside looking in, I like Tony Stewart.
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Jim Huber
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I've found him a remarkable breath of fresh air, different, outspoken, daring, the precise kind of athlete we beg for. A walking sound bite and a heckuva driver.
That and a bit of a loose cannon, it would appear from the outside looking in.
No, I'm not referring to his much-publicized rebellion at wearing the head-and-neck restraint that would seem to be only logical in saving drivers' lives.
I believe he shouldn't have a choice but he should have his say…and has, loudly.
No, I'm picking up on another rant from the weekend past, a hellish time in the blistering heat of Arizona.
Someone asked him a question and you know what you get when you ask Tony Stewart for an opinion. You get an answer that sometimes makes your head whirl.
Someone asked what to do about the restrictor-plate problems at Daytona and Talladega.
"Remove the rear-view mirrors," was Mr. Stewart's calculated response.
Duh, and maybe the brakes?
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Tony Stewart (left) and car owner Joe Gibbs hold court at Phoenix.
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"It sounds stupid," he went on - correctly -- "But if you can't see the guy behind you, you can't run a guy all over the racetrack and block him and get ourselves in the position that we're in."
So, um, eyes straight ahead, no peeking, and the best defense is a good offense? Come to think of it, removing the mirror might have given a lotta drivers over the last few decades a better shot at winning.
Those who looked up and saw Dale Earnhardt bearing down on them and simply said "oh-oh, here we go again."
And another thing from Mr. Stewart…"Make sure the spotters aren't driving the race cars for them (the drivers). You can't run people down to the yellow line and you can't run people up into the wall and we don't have situations like we've gotten into the last couple of races there."
You read this and say, well, that's just Tony being Tony. And as a consequence, you don't look beyond the words, dismissing him as just another floating noise. Perhaps that's unfair for, midst all of it, there might be a genuine idea.
Something must be done, certainly. If anybody has a better notion, speak up now or spend the rest of your days looking behind you.
NOTE: Jim Huber's column appears every Tuesday on NASCAR.com. The opinions listed here are solely those of the writer.
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