Tony Stewart Says He’d Fire NASCAR’s Upper Management
· Yahoo Sports
Tony Stewart does not hold back when asked about the current state of NASCAR. The three-time Cup Series champion told Sportico that if he were in charge, he would fire much of upper management on his first day. He believes NASCAR has drifted from its original fan base and needs to reconnect with the fans who helped build the sport. This is not a mild suggestion from a retired driver. It is a call for a complete house cleaning at the top.
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Stewart argues that NASCAR has become too complicated, even for people who once helped shape the sport. He said he has been away from the competition side for two years and still struggles to follow some of the rules. He believes that if former drivers and owners have trouble keeping up, longtime fans may be struggling as well.
Stewart also acknowledged that NASCAR has good people in leadership, but believes they face too many obstacles to put their ideas into practice. He said the sport has “shot ourselves in our foot” by overthinking the product and losing touch with the fans who helped build it.
The Cost of Losing the Fan
The problem goes beyond just confusing rules. Stewart believes the leadership has forgotten who the sport was built for. He wants to bring back the passion that defined the early days of racing. “If I was president for a day, that would be one of the main focuses is getting that original fan base back and making it relatable like it used to be,” Stewart told Sportico. The sport has drifted so far from its roots that it feels foreign to those who built it. Reconnecting with the past is the only way to fix the future.
Stewart is not the only prominent voice calling for changes. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has also questioned aspects of NASCAR’s current car and argued for a simpler approach that better reflects the sport’s roots. The Next Gen car, introduced in 2022, brought a more standardized design and greater emphasis on road-course-style technology. Critics argue that the changes have made the cars feel less familiar to traditional stock-car fans.
Still, calls to simplify the car do not necessarily mean NASCAR should abandon the Next Gen platform. The debate is about whether the current design and rules deliver the kind of racing that longtime fans expect.
Drivers Feel the Pain Too
The frustration is not limited to retired drivers and team owners. Current drivers have also questioned whether NASCAR’s championship format consistently rewards performance.
Denny Hamlin described the current Chase format as a “slow bleed” compared with the previous championship system. He has also questioned Toyota’s ability to convert strong race performance into championships. Hamlin pointed to the manufacturer’s three Cup titles over the past 20 years, despite periods of considerable speed and competitiveness.
Those are related concerns, but they are not exactly the same. Hamlin’s criticism focuses on how performance translates into championships, while the broader debate over NASCAR’s format centers on how much weight to place on consistency, race wins, and postseason performance.
Christopher Bell also acknowledged that circumstances affected Toyota’s championship hopes. He said he had been confident a Toyota driver would win the title, but that Kyle Larson’s No. 5 team had improved significantly during the Chase. Bell noted that he, Chase Briscoe, and Hamlin each faced circumstances that hurt their chances.
Bell’s comments point to the difference between having speed and putting together a championship run. He has also said he enjoys the current format, which places a premium on winning races and performing over the course of the 10-week Chase. His perspective is more nuanced than a simple call to overhaul the system.
Stewart’s call to fire NASCAR’s upper management is extreme, but his concerns reflect a broader debate about the sport’s direction. Drivers, former champions, and team owners have questioned whether NASCAR’s rules, cars, and championship format are serving the fans who made the sport successful.
The 2026 season concluded with the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 8. As NASCAR looks toward 2027, the challenge will be balancing innovation and competition with the traditions that have long defined stock-car racing. Stewart believes the sport needs fresh leadership and a renewed focus on its original fan base. Whether NASCAR makes those changes remains to be seen.