Tony Stewart indicated his opinions aren’t welcome at NASCAR and reiterated past comments that he wants NASCAR Chairman Brian France more involved in the trenches when it comes to running the sport.
Stewart last year said he wished France would come to the meetings the NASCAR drivers council has with NASCAR executives, and he was more emphatic in delivering that message Thursday during the NASCAR preseason media days.
“Sometimes they [at NASCAR] need a little help with making decisions,” Stewart said during his session with reporters. “Sometimes they don’t think it’s a good idea.
“Brian France cautioned me on making too many suggestions last year, so I’m going to try to keep my ideas to myself a little bit. But there’s some places that welcome our ideas.”
Like many drivers, Stewart was frustrated with the aerodynamic package used last season, a package that featured reduced horsepower and slightly reduced downforce. The downforce has been reduced more this year, a move Stewart hopes helps the racing.
“There’s been a lot of great things and there’s some things I’ve disagreed with along the line,” Stewart said. “Brian France gave me a message at Pocono last year that just because I didn’t like something didn’t mean I was right. So I took that to heart.”
On SiriusXm NASCAR Radio later in the day, the three-time Sprint Cup champion was more emphatic about France’s involvement.
“He’s right — it’s their series, they’ve got to make the decisions and just because it is my idea doesn’t mean it’s the right idea,” Stewart told host Dave Moody. “But I would like to think in the 37 years that I’ve been racing that I’ve learned a thing or two.”
Stewart, who is retiring from Cup racing after this season, said on SiriusXM other drivers are afraid of repercussions for making France mad and possibly drivers are more open in the meetings without France in the room. He said he knows that France cares, but he feels France needs a different approach.
“I would like for him to be there [in these meetings] because I want to make sure that the stuff that I’m talking about — I want to know before I leave that room that he understands,” Stewart said. “I want to see that he cares enough to be there, not sit there and get a report from somebody. … I want to see Brian France at the track more.
“I want to see him walking through the garage more. I want to see him being more active than just showing up and patting sponsors on the back and going up in the suite.”
The biggest issue for Stewart appears to be France’s reliance on former General Motors mechanical engineer and product development executive Gene Stefanyshyn to make decisions on how the cars are built. Stefanyshyn joined NASCAR in 2013 and the NASCAR senior vice president has spearheaded the changes, including an experimental high-drag package that drivers and fans panned after races at Indianapolis and Michigan.
“You’re standing up for a guy that’s never worked on a race car, never been part of a race team that now is making the decisions on what the rules package is going to be versus guys that have been driving race cars for 20 or 30 years?” Stewart said. “So you’re telling us that guy is smarter than what we all are? That’s where Brian France and I disagree a lot.”
