Weekend That Was: 'Dega (cont'd)

His first reaction was to point an agitated finger at McMurray as he drove by on the track. Later, once he determined his anger should be directed toward Gilliland for rear-ending him, Stewart said that Gilliland had "no talent" and that Gilliland had basically "lucked" into his ride in the No. 38 car at Robert Yates Racing (watch video).

All in all, it was a busy weekend for Stewart and his mouth.

And you know what?

It illustrated again why NASCAR better hope he doesn't follow through on his idle (and ridiculous) threats to retire "when he gets enough money." This sport needs Stewart. In fact, it needs more Tony Stewarts -- more guys to question the status quo and shake things up and say whatever is on their mind at the very moment a question is still being processed by their frontal lobe.

He admitted that he frequently says stupid things that get him into trouble. There is no question about that.

But it's also a large part of what continues to make him one of the more interesting drivers in NASCAR. So let's hope he keeps right on yapping.

Stewart's arrival not what he expected

Stewart arrived at Talladega and immediately met with NASCAR to discuss his behavior and criticism of officials.

• Complete story, click here
• Caraviello: Not all of it is bad
• Stewart struggles to stay quiet

The next great rivalry?
What the Nextel Cup Series really needs is an honest-to-goodness, bona-fide, old-school rivalry. Not like the one that never really existed between Gordon and Earnhardt or a pseudo-rivalry like the one that existed all too briefly between the now-retired Jimmy Spencer and Kurt Busch, but a real one between some top heavyweights.

So who's it going to be? Well, it seems a given that Stewart has to be on one end of any such rivalry, should it actually develop. So here are three top enchanting possibilities:

1. Stewart vs. NASCAR: Ah, we already know who would win this one. All NASCAR had to do to make Stewart contrite about his radio show comments was schedule a 6 a.m. meeting with him, making it difficult for the notorious late riser to muster the emotional energy required to fight back.

2. Stewart vs. Kyle Busch: Now here's one that might work. For a great rivalry to develop, both drivers have to be talented and in great equipment. It helps if both sport personalities that include an ample dose of ego, more than a dash of explosive temper and just a touch of immaturity -- all of which tends to lead to the types of overreactions to incidents that make for great storylines. These two seem to fit the required personality profile perfectly.

3. Stewart vs. Juan Montoya: Someone is going to get a rivalry going with Montoya and let's face it, the Montoya-Ryan Newman deal doesn't have legs because Newman isn't consistently good enough anymore, while Montoya is only going to get better over time. Stewart is still peeved at Montoya for an incident earlier this season, but the fact is that these two are cut from the same drivers' cloth. They are so much alike in their brash driving styles that they're bound to clash, and theirs could develop into a rivalry with some juice that will last.

Humpy's opinion
Humpy Wheeler, track president of Lowe's Motor Speedway, knows what potential rivalry would claim his vote.

"The Montoya-Stewart thing could end up being one of the more interesting stories of the year," Wheeler said. "Or it could be Montoya and somebody else, who knows? [Montoya] is just doing things out on the racetrack that no one expected him to do this early. He's very bold -- and when his car is running well, he doesn't mind getting up there and duking it out with anyone. He's kind of fresh air, in a way.

"I love it. He drives every lap like it's the last lap. I mean, he's just all-out. And that's what will win some races for him. If that guy would win one race this year -- that's all -- next year he may be the catalyst that we haven't had in a long time."

Montoya was having another strong run at Talladega when Newman clipped him, causing him to get into the outside wall. That relegated Montoya to a 32nd-place finish, dropping him to 19th in the point standings. (Continued)