Carl Edwards gave special retirement gift to ‘Smoke’ – Nascar

RELATED: What if Edwards had won 2011 title?

While Tony Stewart hasn’t wanted the whole “retirement tour” and the gifts that come along with it like what we saw with Jeff Gordon in 2015, the three-time Sprint Cup Series champion recently received a gift that he couldn’t refuse — and from an unlikely source.

Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Carl Edwards revealed Thursday during the Championship 4 press conference in Miami that he gave “Smoke” the helmet he wore at Homestead-Miami Speedway to conclude Stewart’s third and final championship run in 2011 … when Stewart beat Edwards in heart/tie-breaking fashion.

“I watched him on my way up,” Edwards said of the gesture. “To see him progress and to finally be able to battle him, that was a lot of fun.”

It may have been fun, but Edwards still can’t quite stomach the reminder that he nearly could’ve been going for his second Sprint Cup Series title this weekend in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App).

The final race from 2011 recently re-aired on NBCSN, and the veteran driver could only tune-in for a handful of minutes before he gave up after stumbling upon it on TV.

“I had seen enough after five or 10 minutes,” Edwards said. “I had to shut it off.”

MORE: Stewart relives title via live tweeting