Earlier this year, Tony Stewart was ready to walk away from the driver’s seat. He said it himself. During a conversation at the PRO Superstar Shootout in Florida, he confessed that the frustrations of adapting to NHRA Top Fuel drag racing had him thinking about stepping aside. It wasn’t just about results. The pressure of carrying his team, the testing for 2025, and the lack of wins had worn him down. “I was actually considering stepping aside as a driver,” he said, blunt and tired.

But then something changed. Within weeks, he did what many doubted he could. Stewart won his first-ever Top Fuel race at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas. It wasn’t a fluke. It was an emphatic statement. With a blistering 3.870-second run at 317.42 mph, he outran three rivals in a final that tested nerves, reaction times, and everything in between. In a class where the most minor mistake can be fatal to your chances, Stewart didn’t just survive—he conquered.

He stood in victory lane in Las Vegas, holding the Wally trophy with his wife Leah Pruett by his side. The same wife who stepped away from racing to focus on starting a family and handed Stewart the reins of her 11,000-horsepower machine. Tony took that seat. He took the hits. And then he took the win. However, this win came at a place for which his wife once warned him. But Stewart didn’t blink. He brushed off the concerns, stepped in, and made history.

Tony Stewart embraces the chaos and NHRA madness!

Tony Stewart’s first Top Fuel win wasn’t just a checkered flag—it was a declaration. A man who had nothing left to prove in motorsports proved something anyway. And he did it in a format that’s left even veteran NHRA drivers scratching their heads. It came from a place that had previously been questioned—even by Leah herself. The Four-Wide format, where four cars launch simultaneously instead of two, had made her nervous for Tony.

But after winning the race in Sin City, Stewart found it equalizer. “I just remember when I came here the first time with Leah, and, you know, she was talking about how a lot of the drivers don’t like this format just because it’s different. It’s non-traditional,” he said after the event. And he’s right. The Four Wide format is a wild card event in the NHRA calendar. Only Las Vegas and Charlotte host these events. Instead of racing just one car in a single lane, you race three others side by side. It’s a more optimized format with two races acting as heats, and the third round is the final event.

The challenge begins before the car even launches. Two center drivers must read off their own separate Christmas Tree lights, creating a split-second confusion that can wreck even the best driver’s rhythm. Even stars like Justin Ashley and Erica Enders admit how difficult it is. “It’s been confusing since day one,” Enders once said. The extra lights, the unfamiliar timing—it all messes with muscle memory. And Stewart? To him, the chaos was familiar.

“It’s an equalizer. They’re out of their comfort zone. I’m used to stuff like this. That gives me a shot… I haven’t been around long enough to get set in my ways,” he said with a grin. And the number backs his comments. Stewart has won more than 100 races in different racing series like NASCAR, IndyCar, and Sprint Cars. Getting a win in NHRA just places him among one of the most versatile drivers in the world.

Interestingly, Las Vegas has been Smoke’s stomping ground. He won his USAC Silver Crown race at the dirt track. In 2012, he won at the bigger track, notching his first win at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the Cup Series. A P122 finish in Vegas also saw him bag the Indy Car championship in 1997. So, it was only fitting that his first NHRA Top Fuel win came in the Sin City.

However, in the background of it all was a truth Stewart never denied—Leah Pruett is one of the best Top Fuel drivers NHRA has ever seen. She nearly won a world title in 2022, holds a couple of championships, and has blazed a trail from Junior Dragsters to NHRA greatness. Stewart knew stepping into her car wasn’t just about replacing a driver—it was about honoring her legacy. And at Las Vegas, he did just that.

As he prepares for the next Four Wide battle in Charlotte, Stewart can now smile a little easier. He didn’t just survive NHRA’s most difficult format—he thrived. And in doing so, he silenced the doubts, including the ones from home. Meanwhile, he is also taking shots at NASCAR for something that has troubled fans and drivers in the last few years: its entertainment factor.

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Stewart takes a dig at NASCAR

Tony Stewart has never been afraid to speak his mind. Over the years, he’s taken shots at officials, rules, and even the sport that made him a household name—NASCAR. But since moving into NHRA, Stewart has found something he didn’t even know he was looking for—joy. After his win in Vegas, Stewart wasn’t just celebrating. He took a subtle but pointed shot at NASCAR—the world he once dominated.

“I haven’t been around the NHRA series very long, but I realized it takes a lot to win one of these Top Fuel races. Everything in my career, I never had to wait over a year to win a race. We always figured it out pretty quickly, and we won,” he said. That line didn’t just reflect on NHRA—it spoke volumes about his frustration with how NASCAR operates now. Stewart came from an era where drivers had more control, where grit and feel mattered.

Over the years, NASCAR’s shift toward corporate structures, charter systems, and standardized setups changed the sport. Stewart’s old-school, hands-on approach doesn’t fit the modern Cup garage. In NHRA, though, he’s back in control. The team is his. The decisions are his. And the wins, when they come, feel earned. It’s raw and honest—qualities Stewart has always lived by. And it’s no surprise that he feels more at home there now than he did in his final NASCAR years.