Candyass or Ironhead? Tune in next week....

In case you haven't heard, Tony Stewart broke his shoulder in a racing accident at Charlotte on Memorial Day weekend. This past weekend at Dover, he was relieved 35 laps into the race by "retired" driver Ricky Rudd. Some feel bad for him, some think he's a candyass for getting out of that race car. I say the real test comes in one week.

Why? Oh, yeah, its an Earnhardt story. You see, in 1996 he was involved in a horrific wreck at Talladega. The result was a broken left collarbone and a cracked sternum. Is that better or worse than Stewart's injury? Sounds worse, but I'm not a doctor. Any M.D.s want to chime in here? Okay, so the next race was the Brickyard 400 at Indy. Earnhardt got out of the car to let Mike Skinner take over. The following week the Cup series went to Watkins Glen...a road course. That's right, they have to turn right! And shift and brake countless times per lap. The g-forces push them right and left multiple times every lap. What did Ironhead do? He qualified the car on the pole and set a new track record in the process. Then he ran the entire race and finished sixth. Sure, he had a relief driver lined up, but he refused to get out of the car.

So, what's the point? Let's see if Stewart gets out of the car at Pocono this weekend, arguably a much easier track to drive than Watkins Glen would be with that kind of injury. Before NASCAR implemented their ridiculous gear rule last year, Pocono would have been more difficult. But now you don't (read "can't") downshift anymore so its just like any other oval.

That's the test for me. If Stewart yields to Rudd again, I say he's a candyass. If he toughs it out, maybe some of the comparisons to ol' Ironhead are warranted. Stay tuned.

More on the Earnhardt story: http://www.daleearnhardt.net/history/96die/index.htm