Three's company for Stewart this weekend

CONCORD, N.C. -- The Indy-Charlotte double? That's a walk in the park compared to Tony Stewart's triple-header weekend.

In addition to his usual Winston Cup ride in Sunday's Tropicana 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, Stewart will be defending his points lead in Saturday's International Race of Champions.

	Tony Stewart

On Friday night, Stewart assumes the role of car owner, leaving the driving to World of Outlaws star Danny Lasoski, who will be racing at nearby Route 66 Raceway.

Oh, by the way, Lasoski and Stewart will be competing against each other in Saturday's IROC race.

"Being able to go to the World of Outlaws race, even though it's only one night of watching Danny run, and then being able to participate with him in the IROC race -- that's about as much as the fun meter can take for a weekend," Stewart said. "It's a good, fun weekend that I enjoy.

"I've got a lot of fans in that area from our open-wheel days. Being able to see those people that we don't get a chance to see that often and being able to spend time with Danny and actually race with him again -- that's a pretty cool weekend for me."

The weekend may be cool but Stewart's still heated over a 39th-place finish at Daytona last week, leaving him seventh in the Winston Cup point standings.

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However, Stewart's about to hit his annual hot streak. Of his 14 career wins, eight have come between July and November.

Typical of most of the newer 1 1/2-mile ovals on the Winston Cup circuit, passing can be risky, so Stewart said track position is critical.

"I think it just depends on how your car is working," Stewart said. "If your car is driving well, one that keeps you up toward the front all day because it's fast, then just two tires can keep you pretty quick.

"In that situation, you could make a big gain at the end by just taking on two tires and maintaining your track position. Even some guys who are behind and don't have their car the way they want, by taking on two tires the track position they gain helps out more than four tires would."

By winning the opener at Daytona and finishing sixth at California in the second race, Stewart leads the IROC standings by three points over fellow Winston Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick.

Stewart has won championships in Sprint, Midget and Silver Crown cars. He's an Indy Racing League champion and NASCAR Winston Cup rookie of the year. So where would an IROC championship rank in his trophy case?

"It would be a good feeling, because you know that you've beaten the best drivers in each of their respective fields," Stewart said. "So being able to not only run with those guys from different series, but to be able to beat them at the same time would be a pretty gratifying experience.

"I honestly don't know where I would rank it, because I'm proud of all my championships. But, an IROC championship would certainly be one to cherish."