Top 20 Countdown: No. 4 Tony Stewart
(Getty Images)
2009 statistics
Finish | Poles | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
6 | 0 | 4 | 15 | 23 |
The countdown
No. 20: Martin Truex Jr. | Career stats
No. 19: Brian Vickers | Career stats
No. 18: Kasey Kahne | Career stats
No. 17: Clint Bowyer | Career stats
No. 16: David Reutimann | Career stats
No. 15: Kevin Harvick | Career stats
No. 14: Ryan Newman | Career stats
No. 13: Greg Biffle | Career stats
No. 12: Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Career stats
No. 11: Jeff Burton | Career stats
No. 10: Matt Kenseth | Career stats
No. 9: Juan Pablo Montoya | Career stats
No. 8: Kurt Busch | Career stats
No. 7: Mark Martin | Career stats
No. 6: Carl Edwards | Career stats
No. 5: Kyle Busch | Career stats
No. 4: Tony Stewart | Career stats
No. 3: Revealed Feb. 3
Editor's note: Yahoo! Sports is counting down the top 20 drivers of the 2010 season. The order was determined by a survey, which asked five NASCAR journalists – Jay Busbee and Jay Hart (Yahoo! Sports); Jenna Fryer (Associated Press); Dustin Long (Landmark Newspapers); and Nate Ryan (USA Today) – to predict the final standings for the 2010 season. The countdown will conclude on Feb. 5 with the unveiling of the No. 1 driver.
2009 finish: 6th
Our 2010 predictions:
• Jay Busbee: 4th
• Jay Hart: 4th
• Jenna Fryer: 5th
• Dustin Long: 3rd
• Nate Ryan: 10th
2010 outlook: It was a tale of two seasons for Tony Stewart, who came out of the box much quicker than anyone expected in 2009 only to peter out at crunch time. Despite his late-season slide from No. 2 entering the Chase to No. 6 leaving it, '09 was still a rousing success for Stewart in his inaugural season as an owner/driver.
While it's tempting to grade Stewart on what he didn't do in the Chase after all the success he had leading up to it, that wouldn't be a fair assessment, not when he was the one who changed expectations from the low – not making the Chase – to the highest of highs – winning the whole damn thing.
The real impact of what Stewart accomplished in 2009 may not be understood for a few years when we see if other drivers attempt to follow his path and give ownership a try. The money drivers make these days along with the sponsorship possibilities that could follow them instead of an established organization certainly make it feasible.
In the meantime, Stewart will try once again to do something no one has done since Alan Kulwicki did it back in 1992 – win a championship as an owner/driver. Stewart says he's a lot more relaxed now than he was at this time a year ago. He has cars built, a year of trial under his belt and the knowledge that, after placing both himself and teammate Ryan Newman in last year's Chase, it can work.
"I'm expecting a great year," said Stewart. "I feel like both of us being able to get in the Chase last year was something I expect both teams to do. I feel like the changes that we went through and the work we've done over the winter has prepared both of these teams to have a shot at running for a championship."
What you need to know: No one completed more laps than Stewart did in 2009. (Ironically, he and Newman both ran a season-high 10,468). But being around for the finish may have come at the cost of aggression. Stewart led just 414 laps, or 1,824 fewer than Jimmie Johnson.
