“I’m going to be crucified by a lot of people!” Tony Stewart declares Daytona 500 lost its elite status due to undeserved racer winners

Three times NASCAR Cup Series champion Tony Stewart has given a cold verdict on the loss of Daytona 500’s elite status.

“I’m going to be crucified by a lot of people!” Tony Stewart declares Daytona 500 lost its elite status due to undeserved racer winners

Tony Stewart (Via IMAGO)

Considered as the fourth crown jewel race in Motorsports, the Daytona 500 is the elitist and the most famous stock car racing event in the world. The NASCAR season opener hosted at Daytona International Speedway is one event that every stock car racer dreams of winning and the only victory that champions of the sport is ready to trade in their Bill France Cup for.

Three times Cup Series champion Tony Stewart is one of them, as he hasn’t won a single Daytona 500 in his Hall of Fame career. Recently on his Rubbin is Racing podcast appearance, Stewart admitted his thoughts about the status of the race has changed, with it becoming more of a lucky draw anyone can win and not the best racer of the day.

When it comes to Daytona, now I’m going to be crucified by a lot of people for this. In my eyes, it doesn’t mean the same now as it did 15-20 years ago. Anybody can win, I mean, you look at some of the guys that won the Daytona 500.

Tony Stewart said via Rubbin is Racing.

Further talking about the point, he admitted that he doubts if now wants to be part of the list of Daytona 500 winners. Though some of the Great American race winners over the years are his close friends, Stewart coldly hinted that they weren’t drivers that deserved them. He highlighted how the 500-mile race is the only victory on some of the drivers resume, showing how it’s easier to win.

I don’t want to go into the list of guys because they’re guys that I do respect and have friendships with, but they’re not guys that should have won the Daytona 500 and they’ve won the Daytona 500 and that’s all they’ve won. They may have won one or two races outside of that

Tony Stewart added.

Tony Stewart is still longing for a Daytona 500 win

Despite all the drama, Tony Stewart is longing for the victory at the iconic race. He highlighted how the dominant winners the track are still the legends of the sport, so he won’t hesitate to go back and win one Superspeedway event. Even if that means he has got to trade one of his cup race wins for it.

Tony Stewart
Tony Stewart (Via @Tony_Stewart/X)

Anybody in the field can win the Daytona 500 now. As much as it’s a crown jewel, I would still go back, and I would trade some of my race wins to get the Daytona 500.

Tony Stewart said.

The comments from Tony Stewart are born out frustration seeing drivers that would never have won the race if not for luck, dominating a race that dreamt of winning till the day he retired. It seems the veteran understand that he would have had a better shot nowadays to win the event compared to the past years.

The major reason behind the Superspeedway races losing its charm is the cars. The drafting has changed a lot with physical push becoming more significant than the aero advantage. The racers behaving more aggressively on the track and causing unnecessary incident has also ruined the fun.  

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