Tony Stewart refused to apologize for hitting Clint Bowyer, who crashed Carl Edwards. Credit: AP

Edwards, Bowyer furious with Stewart after bump

Two-time Cup champion refuses to apologize to young drivers

LONG POND, Pa. -- Tony Stewart was laughing and joking after returning to the top 10 in Nextel Cup points with Sunday's seventh-place finish at Pocono Raceway.

Tony Stewart's day ended up quite a bit better than Carl Edwards'. Credit: CIA Stock Photo

Pennsylvania 500 Official Results Pos. Driver Make 1. Denny Hamlin Chevy 2. Kurt Busch Dodge 3. Jeff Gordon Chevy 4. Brian Vickers Chevy 5. Kevin Harvick Chevy 6. Jimmie Johnson Chevy 7. Tony Stewart Chevy 8. Bobby Labonte Dodge 9. Jeff Burton Chevy 10. Martin Truex Jr. Chevy • Complete results, click here • Official standings, click here All about patienceStewart and Edwards review their Pocono altercation Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

The two drivers he took out on Lap 31 did neither.

Clint Bowyer, who was seventh when Stewart turned into him coming down the front straightaway of the 2.5-mile track, tried to confront the defending Cup champion on pit road but was stopped near the front of Stewart's car.

Carl Edwards, who was caught up in Bowyer's spin, threatened to give Stewart an "ass-whooping" over his car radio before settling for a verbal assault with reporters outside his hauler.

"Man, I've got to choose my words carefully," said Edwards, not easily angered. "Let me just say this: If it weren't for respect of the sport and the people watching and his team and everything, he'd be out there bleeding right now.

"That's so frustrating. How can a person make it this far in life being that much of a jerk?"

Edwards finished 39th to fall to 14th in points with six races left before the Chase to the Nextel Cup is set. Bowyer finished 41st to fall three spots to 19th.

"He turned into Clint and took both him and I out and probably made it just about impossible for us to make the Chase," Edwards said. "And then when I pull up beside him and wave my hand like, 'What was that about?' he gives me the finger.

"I mean, what a jerk. I don't even know what to say. It's amazing to me that someone can be that special."

Edwards enacted a degree of revenge when he spun Stewart as they entered pit road under caution on Lap 67, drawing a one-lap penalty for aggressive driving just like the one Stewart received for hitting Bowyer.

But he wanted to do more.

So much more.

"I want to like Tony," Edwards said. "He's a hard racer and all that, but how can you like somebody like that? It's just amazing. If you hold that guy up, like if he thinks you held him up, he gets so upset and then he can wreck two guys and give you the finger.

"That's spectacularly self-centered. I can't imagine being like that."

Stewart showed no remorse. He told crew chief Greg Zipadelli over his radio he wouldn't apologize for the accident, but promised to make it up on the track.

	Clint Bowyer was ahead of Tony Stewart, but when Stewart tried to pass on the outside, the result was not pretty. Credit: Autostock
	Black flagAltercation with Bowyer earns Stewart a black-flag penalty Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

He did that, moving up a spot to 10th in the championship hunt after two consecutive finishes of 32nd.

He then attacked the patience of young drivers such as Bowyer, a rookie, and Edwards, in his second full season.

"If the 3 car was here, I don't think we would have the same problems in this series as we have," said Stewart, referring to the late Dale Earnhardt. "He always had a way of letting drivers know where they stood and when to move and when not to move.

"It's just the first-year and second-year drivers that don't understand that there needs to be a little give and take. There is only a handful of guys that don't get it, but the problem is they are in good racecars and they don't run up front enough to learn from the rest of us how to race up front."

Stewart was pinched into the wall by Bowyer coming off Turn 3 when the trouble began. Bowyer slid over to give Stewart room, and then Stewart turned hard into Bowyer.

Bowyer then collected Edwards, an innocent bystander.

During the ensuing caution, NASCAR announced that Stewart would be held a lap for aggressive driving and not be allowed to use the "Lucky Dog'' rule to get the lap back the rest of the race.

"He runs us into the wall and we get black-flagged ... that's funny," Stewart said over his car radio.

Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's vice president for competition, said Stewart's move was blatant enough to deserve the penalty. He blamed the incident on the pressure of competing for a spot in the Chase, not the age of the drivers.

Pemberton also suggested veteran drivers such as Stewart should show more patience passing young drivers with little experience on tracks such as Pocono.

LEARN TO GIVE A week ago, Tony Stewart spun while leading and trying to lap Ryan Newman. He said Newman -- and others -- need to learn how to give more than take.  •   Complete story, click here Loudon spinRace leader Tony Stewart spins at New Hampshire Sign up for TrackPass now BUY THE NEXTEL i836

"Right now, the pressure is on everybody and everybody is racing hard," Pemberton said. "We're getting down to a handful of races to make it to the Chase, and the tension level, unfortunately, is high at this point.

"Hopefully Stewart will show some restraint and just put a hand on the shoulder of a younger competitor."

Unfortunately for Stewart, the younger competitors wanted to put a hand on him.

Bowyer was so angry that he left the track refusing to comment as he disappeared into the motorcoach lot.

Edwards couldn't stop criticizing the two-time champion.

"There are a lot of things you can't control, and I guess we just have to chalk the driver of that 20 car up as one of them," he said.

Fortunately for Stewart, he controlled his emotions after the incident. He started 41st on the restart alongside leader Ryan Newman, the driver he called out for not playing the give-and-take game a week ago at New Hampshire.

"Everybody races each other different, and there's guys that are really good at give and take and there's guys that aren't," Stewart said last week. "Ryan's one of those guys that's not good at the giving part. He's really good at taking."

This time, Newman gave Stewart plenty of room, allowing Stewart back on the lead lap.

Stewart came around to rejoin the leaders when Kyle Petty lost a tire to bring out the caution on Lap 66. As Stewart entered pit road a lap later, Edwards spun him out.

"What I did wrong there was I put those guys on pit road at risk," Edwards said. "I made sure to spin him out so he went to the right, but still, I shouldn't have done that on pit road.

"That was a justified penalty and for that I apologize."

Before the next restart, Zipadelli told Stewart to take a deep breath.

"Relax. Be smart," he radioed as the race resumed with Stewart running 38th. "We've got a long way to go."

Stewart steadily climbed up the leaderboard and might have been a threat had Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin not been so dominant for the second time at Pocono this season.

"That was an awesome comeback," Stewart said with a smile.

But again, no apologies for Bowyer or Edwards.

"Ask some veterans and ask the guys that I run up front with every week," Stewart said. "I think I'm a pretty fair driver to those guys. If I'm wrong on that, I'll quit. I'll give you my hard card and retire tomorrow.

"But I'm pretty sure that those guys are going to say I race pretty fair 99 out of 100 times."