Dylan Kwasniewski at home in Las Vegas

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Holly Cain

Kwasniewski returns to his hometown of Las Vegas in hopes of emerging a winner

LAS VEGAS – Dylan Kwasniewski started attending NASCAR races at his hometown Las Vegas Motor Speedway when he was nine years old, his first race spent atop family friend Robby Gordon’s pit box. For most of the past half decade he raced Super Late Models and Modifieds at the "Bullring" — the short track located in the mighty speedway’s shadow.

This weekend, the 18-year old Kwasniewski has arrived and emerged. He’ll make his big track debut in Saturday’s NASCAR Nationwide Series’ Boyd Gaming 300.

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"It’s pretty surreal, the only laps I’ve ever had on here were with the [Richard] Petty Experience [driving school]," Kwasniewski said.

"Hopefully I’ll have the advantage of having my hometown crowd cheering me on, with family and friends here watching.

"It’s just going to be a good experience no matter what the finish will be, to be here racing against these guys at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it’s a dream come true."

"Hopefully," he added with a laugh. "We’ll have some speed and not suck in front of my hometown."

Kwasniewski had speed in the No. 31 Rockstar Chevrolet for sure, turning in the 15th fastest lap at one point during NASCAR Nationwide Series opening practice on the 1.5-mile high banks.

But 10 minutes later, he slammed the Turn 4 wall, badly damaging his Chevy, but not daunting his determination.

The Turner Scott Motorsports team quickly had a back-up car prepared for him and he was among the top-20 fastest in the second practice.

"It sucks," a disappointed Kwasniewski said as watched his crew get the back-up car ready. "We were loose and I should have just pulled it in and instead ended up overcorrecting. You’ve got to push it and I just pushed it too hard.

"We’ll bounce back and it’s not going to stop me from going back out and trying my hardest again."

A two-time NASCAR K&N Series champion, Kwasniewski is already proving his mettle in the Nationwide Series among a stellar group of seven high profile rookies. He won the pole position in the Daytona season opener – his first ever race in the series – and sits fifth in points after two races with finishes of eighth and 13th.

"I knew if we could get out of Daytona with the car in tact we’d be on track," Kwasniewski said. "I am surprised I’m doing this well, but I’d like to be doing better than I am.

"I’m my toughest critic. I want to be better than whatever I’m doing, even if I’m second I want to win. My team at Turner Scott Motorsports is a lot of great guys and we’re gelling right now. I want to improve each time I go out."

That mindset doesn’t surprise his biggest fan: his mom Jennifer.

"My husband had a saying, it takes Dylan three races and one wreck before he settles in," Jen Kwasniewski said with a smile.

And, why not Las Vegas as the prime setting for her son’s maiden win in a NASCAR national series. About 50 family friends will be in the grandstands cheering on Kwasniewski’s debut. And probably a lot of Kwasniewski’s former crew members and competitors from the neighboring Bullring as well.

"The guys I raced at the Bullring think it’s cool I’m getting to race here because it could pave the way for them as well," Kwasniewski said. "[Las Vegas natives] Kyle and Kurt [Busch] did that for us. Hopefully I can pave the way as well."

Mother and son moved to Charlotte this year to be closer to NASCAR’s hub and Kwasniewski’s team. But both say they’ve enjoyed the trip back out West, and are savoring the significance.

"Coming back to Vegas I decided to experience it for what it is," Kwasniewski said grinning. "I went to a show, took a helicopter tour, which is pretty cool. I’d never done any of those things even though I lived in Las Vegas a long time. I decided to live it up, live like I’m a tourist.

"I get to stay in my friend’s house, sleep in a comfortable bed and yet also be a tourist for the first time. See my friends who I haven’t seen in a long time. … It’s cool to wind down, relax in my home city. It’s good to just feel comfortable in the place I know best."

And it’s been a long time coming.

"This is where it all started, this is probably the dream my husband saw the first time he brought Dylan to a race here," Jennifer Kwasniewski said of her late husband Randy, a former CEO and President of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

In addition to his obvious talent behind the steering wheel, Kwasniewski has boy-band good looks and the kind of friendly, polite demeanor that makes a parent proud. All the indications are that he’s got a neon-bright future ahead in NASCAR.

And this weekend that comes full circle on the big oval in his hometown.

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Posted on March 7, 2014 by Holly Cain

Cain: Even in recovery, ‘Smoke’ commands respect from his peers

WATCH: Stewart in ‘Smoke is the Bandit’

LAS VEGAS — The look on Tony Stewart‘s face as he climbed out of his worn-out Chevrolet shortly after the Daytona 500 checkered flag said it all.

Looking frustrated and disappointed in a 35th-place finish, he made it clear that it wasn’t his healing broken leg that was bothering him when he was asked how he felt during his first race back following a six-month layoff.

"I feel like someone kicked me in the (gut)," Stewart said. Then he walked away, trophy-less in the 500 again.

Last week before the Phoenix race, reporters again asked Stewart how his leg was doing.

"I’ll be honest, I’ll be more happy when everybody quits asking me how I feel," Stewart said. "I’m not 100 percent. I’m not going to be 100 percent for a while. It was fine. There wasn’t any drama, same as we said for the shootout, same as we said for the qualifying race and same as we said after the (Daytona) 500.

"I appreciate everybody checking on me, but it’s not going to change in a week. It wasn’t a big drama, everything is fine. Hopefully, we will be able to talk a year from now about how far we have come."

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If the barometer for Stewart’s health and pace of return is based on how feisty he is, then the good news for his fans is that he is apparently back in fine form.

And that’s bad news for his competitors who essentially gained a freebie spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field last year when the three-time Cup champion was sidelined after breaking his leg following an Aug. 5 crash in a sprint car race.

Of course, it’s not like any of the Cup drivers expect any less. Stewart is a threat even if physically half-throttled.

"I know how excited I am getting in a race car, I couldn’t imagine sitting on the sidelines for months and not being able to get back in the car and put all those crazy thoughts out of your head — if you’d be able to race again, what it feel like, is it going to hurt?" said Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick. "Just putting all those things to rest for him is going to be great. If anything is sore or hurts, you’ll never hear about it."

Like most of the other NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regulars, Harvick said he has no doubt Stewart will not only be competitive this season, but also in championship form.

"I knew Tony was a pretty intense guy but we went to a Jimmy John’s event (during the offseason) and … he got on that plane and he was like a crazed lunatic," Harvick said with a grin. "You could see that look in his eye. He looked at me and said, ‘I’m ready to… race!’ Just that look in his eye. I knew he was a pretty intense person but I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s cool.’ "

To a driver, Stewart’s competitors were certain he would be a title contender in 2014. No hesitation.

In fact, when asked to gauge expectations during the preseason, it was mostly nervous consideration of how his return might adversely affect their weekly chances.

"Tony is a factor, he’s always a factor," Jeff Gordon said. "Every weekend you can’t ever count out Tony Stewart as being somebody you’re going to have to deal with."

Stewart’s mood had drastically improved by the time he arrived in Las Vegas this week. His 16th-place finish at Phoenix was progress, and he was buoyed by Harvick’s victory there in only his second start for SHR.

Las Vegas is Stewart’s kind of town. Beyond the fact he’s a former winner (2012) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he loves the pace and action of the locale.

And as Harvick was reminded during a recent trip to Vegas with Stewart, it would be unwise to ever underestimate the drive, the grit or the preparation — especially given a challenge to overcome.

"I feel like as we go through situations, I’ve learned that Tony is one of the smartest people that I know," Harvick said. "I sat at a roulette wheel with Tony in Vegas about four weeks ago. I learned he’s just short of ‘Rain Man.’ He doesn’t say anything. He sits there and listens to everything you say, takes all these things in.

"I know I’m going to say something and he’s going to remember it four, five, six weeks down the road. I’ve learned just sitting in the competition meetings that we’ve had that he’s a listener. I think there’s a lot to be said for that.”

Told of the high expectations his competitors held for his season, Stewart smiled. He seemed humbled to hear that no one anticipated anything but the best.

"I mean, we all know each other personality-wise," Stewart said. "We all know our drive and determination amongst each other."

And for those concerned with how Stewart is feeling, it will become apparent the first time he drives his No. 14 Chevrolet into Victory Lane this season.

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