Tony Stewart hits and kills fellow racer

Go to a dirt race sometime. Watch the front wheels of ANY car, the driver is constantly inputting steering sometimes it seems like lock to lock. These cars are effectively dancing on that right rear on a very undulating track surface. As for trying to "take him out", that's certainly a very uneducated observation.

 

+1000. Any racing I've done, they've very explicitly said 'do not get out of the car unless it's on fire or a marshall tells you to.' I honestly don't think any rules need to change, this should be evidence enough of what can happen if you don't stay in the car.

 

Is there a lynch Tony Stewart website yet?

 

Note: this discussion is about 0:08 in the video (the first time Tony hits Ward):

I would suggest that you look at the video and watch that frame in context. I do understand that it is a dance and that opposite lock is the norm in dirt. That said, it is not the norm to apply opposite lock when you are already through the turn.

Here is an example of sprint car racing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sk_9VHvQ_Y8. Obviously you see opposite lock in every turn by every driver, but what you don't see in that video are drivers applying opposite lock after they are through the turn and set up for the straight. Tony was already set up for the straight when he makes a sharp right to take out Ward.

It's not uncommon to see that type move by lesser drivers in go karting and they are black flagged for it because there is no defense a driver can make when he's taken out no matter how skilled they are. Ward didn't have any defense either, which is why he was so pi**ed off. I don't watch sprint car racing at all so I don't know what's legal, but in looking at other sprint car racing videos, that late turn jog to the right does not seem to be the norm.

 

cars were under yellow flag conditions and traveling at a relatively low speed of 40-50 mph

 

Not sprint cars, but here is Tony on the track during caution: Tony Stewart is mad with Kenny Irwin (Matinsville 1999) - YouTube

 

Yup.

So, for all those who are absolving TS, a yellow flag means slow down, hazard ahead. It also means there may be debris or officials (safety crew) on track ahead. Finally, it means BE PREPARED TO STOP.

CW

 

+1

The yellow flag rule is pretty much the first one you'll ever learn when you go on track. Even at indoor kart centers as a 7 year old I was told this. Presumably a pro will understand this rule.

 

I agree completely...dont know where this behavior got started, or acccepted, perhaps to provide better ratings for the networks..or a sign of society today with its all about me, me me.
Just simple physics tells me not to walk out on a track with moving cars on it, especially dirt tracks...
Time to end it....bring some class back to the sport...as a kid when my dad used to take us to the sprint car races, none of this grandstanding temper tantrum stuff went on, and if it did, drivers were kicked out and not allowed to race..

 

Lots of people on here seem to have no clue about the differences between dirt/asphalt and sprint car/other race cars. Might want to educate yourself before making ignorant statements.

This is a good place to start:
Yes, Tony Stewart did run over a fellow driver, who was killed. But know the whole story. | News | Motorsport.com

 

So what? Even if Stewart made a bonehead move that put Ward out of the race, how is that relevant for anything that happened after? Surely it is in no way a justification of Ward acting like he did.

 

Already posted. Nothing new here, really.

CW

 

No one is suggesting that Ward wasn't responsible for acting recklessly.

Rather, what's more at issue at this point is TS' own actions. TS' "put[ting] Ward out of the race" is indeed relevant to intent. If his emotions were high, and he intended to spray Ward to teach him a lesson or make a point and TS miscalculated...that's VERY relevant.

CW

 

Tony Stewart has done the exact same thing of going out on the track during caution. It was not a bright move, to be certain, but it is a circumstance Tony is familiar with first hand.

Accidents happen, of course. My guess is that the hit that killed Ward was an accident, but my guess is that the first hit taking out Ward during the race was not even remotely an accident. I have seen that take-out move many times in karting and, when it occurs like that after the turn is made, it is always intentional. In karting you only see that from lesser drivers and it is penalized because there is no way to defend against it. I have no idea about Sprint cars though. I don't think Tony tried to kill him, but there is no question Ward would still be alive if he hadn't taken him out.

 

In my office there are no racing fans, wouldn't know TS if he sat on them, yet they think he bears some responsibility-and some were outraged that he thought about racing on Sunday as it was "business as usual". Of course Ward was caught in the red mist and paid the ultimate price.

That said, if I am a sponsor I am thinking about distancing myself from TS. Too much baggage.

 

He would still be alive if a lot of things did or didn't happen. The last link is the relevant one. Whether that is his walking in the path of oncoming cars or some action by Stewart remains to be seen.

 

Agreed. But Senna would have lived to see May 2nd 1994 if Lehto hadn't run into the back of Lamy's Lotus at the start of the Imola GP. Just as Alonso would have been the 2010 champ if Schumacher hadn't run into Liuzzi's Force India in Abu Dahbi. What I am trying to say is, yes, Ward would have been alive if Stewart hadn't taken him out, but that doesn't mean this incident caused his death. Ward caused his own death by wandering on to a race track when the race was still in progress. I can't think of anything more dangerous in terms of motorracing. It is not only dangerous, it is insane to the level where one shouldn't allow Ward anywhere near a racingcar anymore.

I don't know whether or not the same can be said of Stewart. I don't follow Nascar or sprintcarracing. If it can, than Stewart should have been banned long before. Doesn't make him responsible for what happened last saturday though.

 

I think this will be the issue as far as any investigations go.

Did Stewart intentionally take out Ward for some reason, making Ward mad enough to do something dumb like walk on the track? If so, then there is a chance that his actions led to Ward's death.

There's also talk today that Stewart wanted to buzz Ward and missed.

You have to look back farther -- maybe even farther than the actual race.

One thing for sure, Go Daddy will pull the ads with Stewart and Danica. Stewart is going to lose a ton of endorsements if it was his fault or not.

To me, if you walk on a track, that's about the same as playing Russian Roulette. Someone eventually is going to get hurt and no one should be surprised.

The only surprise is that Nascar allowed these childish on track activities for some time. They have some responsibility here also.

It made for a good show. Now it cost someone their life.

 

Looking at the "rungs" of the racing ladder, I don't think Sprint Cars is the jumping off point on the road to NASCAR. Its a few steps lower. So did Michael Schumacher or Sebastian Vettel or any other three time champion compete in sports car races on the weekends? TS has been referred to as a bully and quite honestly, it seems like a bully's move to race with much less experienced people on such a regular basis as TS does. No doubt his advanced experience plays into his tactics on the track. If this incident doesn't cause him to "grow up" nothing will.

 

I would have to think that the track was in a full course caution by the time TS came around again. If it was, there is little excuse for hitting someone on the track unless you think a "yellow" means "just slow down". From the only video I have seen, its difficult to tell exactly how far down Ward had walked when he was in the position to be hit. One thing is for sure. There was one person there that night who knew he would be finding an obstacle on the track next time around. It was TS. Maybe he needs glasses.

 

I think it seems clear TS cut Ward off leaving him with no option and that's why he was pissed. As you said, he was through the corner already and then pinched Ward into the wall.

I don't think TS tried to kill anyone, but after watching additional videos of the incident, put me in the crowd of "miscalculation" versus "accident".

 

The only thing that happened to cause Ward's death is him walking into traffic. All of the other things that happened could have still happened without him dying had he, and he alone, decided not to walk into traffic. He made that choice, and all of the other choices everyone else made would have been completely inconsequential had he not walked into the oncoming cars. That's the ONLY decision that directly led to this. TS is not 5%, or 1% or .01% responsible. Had he not walked into traffic, there's a 99.99999% chance he'd still be alive (tiny chance he gets killed later in the race) no matter what TS or any other driver does during the caution.

 

TS racing in Sprint cars is like Kimi racing in WRC. They are top rungs on different ladders. Some people can change ladders successfully, but not all. Btw, tony is at a track I think something near 200 days a year IIRC. He races NASCAR because it pays, he races sprint cars because its what he loves. Pretty much any sprint car race within reasonable distance and not on the same day of a NASCAR CUP race, Tony is on that dirt track racing.

If tony's car had a roll bar camera, this would be a lot more clear.

As for driver's stepping out to gesture/throw helmets, I'm not against it - but use common sense. Walking into the path of a tightly bunching vehichles from their blind side is a lot more dangerous than throwing a helmet at some one driving through pit a brightly lit pitroad in a straight line by themselves under a strictly recorded speed limit.

People have actually climbed onto car's driving by to show their dissatisfaction - which is even more dangerous, and if I ran a track, the guy grabbing onto another car as it passes by is not welcome even as a spectator. An action like this - will kick in uncontrollable natural survival fight or flight reactions in the driver that is in that car, and he's going to skedaddle at great risk to whoever became a sudden passenger.

 

I would expect the opposite from his experience. Ward was already on the wall coming out of that corner, so Tony knew the flick right would put him out. It's nothing less than infuriating when this happens by an unskilled driver in a relatively meaningless go kart race, so I can only imagine how upsetting it would be to be a 20-year-old competing at this level and have this done to you by one of the best in the sport. It's like a movie script where the young upstart learns that the star driver he's worshiped turns out to be a di** on the track. No happy end to this movie though.

 

Usually at a Nascar race when it's done. It's on a 1-2 mile long track giving the cars plenty of time to slow by the next pass. By that time, a spotter has told the driver that so and so is on the track or is out of his car. Plus the pace vehicle gets out there very quickly.
In this tight scenario, most of the cars passing were going close to the same speed as TS.
The opportunity to strike Ward wouldn't have existed if he'd just stayed in his car till the safety crew showed up. There should be a mandate in circle track racing to stay in your car till the safety vehicle is at your side. It could prevent a lot more tragedies.