Bruce: Three-time champion cleared of criminal wrongdoing but life far from the same
RELATED: Full coverage of Stewart incident | No charges from grand jury against Stewart
Now that Tony Stewart has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing in the death of sprint car driver Kevin Ward Jr., what lies ahead for the three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion?
He's been back behind the wheel of his No. 14 Chevrolet for approximately a month, but it's obvious to all that his heart and his head have been elsewhere.
For the first time in his career, success hasn’t been measured by wins and losses, starting positions and points standings. Simply getting through each day has been a minor victory in itself.
Stewart, 43, isn't competing for a championship – that opportunity likely slid into oblivion well before the sprint car incident at Canandaigua (New York) Motorsports Park unfolded. For the second consecutive season, and only the third time since the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup format debuted in 2004, Stewart's been relegated to a minor role in the title picture.
Still, he has eight races ahead in the next two months to immerse himself back into the sport and back into the daily requirements that come with being both a driver and co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing.
There are competition issues to be addressed, sponsorship obligations to fulfill and yes, the question of whether he will return to race sprints will have to be addressed.
How competitive will he and the No. 14 team be in the coming weeks? For starters, Stewart wouldn't be back out on the track if his interest in chasing checkered flags had waned. But it appeared that it was shaping up to be an average year for the team before the world turned upside down. And average isn't a level at which Stewart is comfortable competing. One doesn't win three premier series titles (2002. ’05, ’11), and contend for several more, by being underwhelming.
To some, it might seem a bit early to talk about the racing, and how Stewart might or might not fare. But it is, after all, what he does. It's what he's always done. To fail to consider what the future holds for him on the track would be to ignore the obvious. Maybe he thought about just walking away, but the time to do that has passed.
Off the track is a different story. No doubt Stewart feels a sense of relief in the findings of the grand jury, but the legal wrangling may not have reached an end. A civil suit filed by the family of the 20-year-old Ward remains a possibility.
While a toxicology report found that Ward was under the influence of marijuana ("enough to impair judgment," according to Ontario County District Attorney Michael Tantillo), a statement from the Ward family indicates they will continue to pursue the matter.
If that is indeed the case, the issue could be resolved through some sort of mediation or settlement. If an agreement can't be reached, it would then go to trial.
It's been 47 days since Ward died. His family still mourns.
For Stewart, one hurdle has been cleared. But others, both on the track and off, remain.
MORE:
READ: Latest
|
PLAY: Monitor your Chase Grid Game picks
|
WATCH: Latest
|
FOLLOW LIVE: Get
|
|---|