LAS VEGAS — Tony Stewart has proven time and time again that it doesn’t matter the type of race car, he will adapt and he will be fast.
The three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, who has found success in Indy cars, sprint cars, midgets, late models and various other racing machines during his career, made his NHRA drag racing debut on Friday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
At the wheel of Top Alcohol Dragster fielded by McPhillips Racing, Stewart didn’t disappoint.
In his first qualifying run, he ran a 5.219-second pass at 276.52 mph. while tire shake forced him to shut down early on his second run, his opening blast slates him second in a 21-car field after two rounds of qualifying.
“I was nervous before the first run but it’s a relief now. It’s just like testing all over again,” Stewart told NHRA’s Amanda Busick. “There were a lot of distractions before we ran in the staging lanes so to go up there and make a nice solid run, I’m happy with that. I think I might get fired [based on] reaction time [.076]. I still have two nitro cars running today so now I’ll shift gears and go watch Leah [Pruett] and Matt [Hagan] run. But I’m happy. That was a really good lap.”
Stewart will make one more qualifying run on Saturday morning, with eliminations in the Top Alcohol class scheduled to begin on Saturday afternoon.
