SCR: Many have said that with your past in open-wheel racing, you would never feel as if your career was complete without winning the Indianapolis 500. Do you really feel that way?Stewart: I think I've had a good career no matter what happens in the future. If my career ended tomorrow, I would feel like it was a great one. Sentimentally, I really do want to win the Indianapolis 500. Then again, I don't know if I'll ever do that race again after last year. It's hard to say what I'm going to do because it is so hard trying to do both races. It's getting harder and harder to try and run that race when I'm not running in that series on a regular basis. I feel like some of those guys are getting ahead of me as far as the technology and setups. For me, it's just hard to try and focus on running the Indianapolis 500 because I'm trying to win the Winston Cup championship.
SCR: How much help do you think your open-wheel racing background translated into success in stock cars?Stewart: I think a race car is a race car because they all have four wheels, a brake, and a gas pedal. So I don't think it's that big a difference between open wheel and stock cars. With my running the Midgets and the Sprints, I probably learned to drive a loose car a long time ago.
SCR: What advice would you give to young drivers with aspirations of making it to Winston Cup racing?Stewart: I'd tell them to make sure this is what they want to do before they get here. With million dollar contracts and multiyear deals, once you are here you're here until all those contracts are done. From the outside looking in, it looks great but it's a lot of hard work. Young drivers need to make sure this is truly what they want to do. I love the sport and people involved in Winston Cup racing. All the officials and people in this sport are great to be around, but to me some of the politics takes away from how good it could really be.
SCR: How much do you miss the good old days of Friday- and Saturday-night racing?Stewart: I miss them every single day.
SCR: As far as your racing career goes, what motivates you the most?Stewart: Winning is what it's all about. To be able to go out on the track and beat people and be competitive, that's what it's all about. There's not a better feeling in the world.
SCR: You're a young, single driver, living what almost anyone would consider a dream life. How far from reality is that when you take into account the time you're away from home?Stewart: Anybody who thinks I'm living a dream life, they're the ones who are dreaming. I have not been home in 211/42 weeks to do stuff I've wanted to do. Being able to go out and run some of the short-track races I've done recently has been fun. In all reality, there have been a lot of things I love and enjoy that I've not had the time to do. There is a price. For every amount of success and fame you have, you lose part of your personal life along with it. Right now is a perfect example, because while I'm talking with you, my girlfriend and buddy are at the mall shopping. I'd much rather be hanging out with her, but you know as well as I do there is no way I could spend two normal hours at the mall. That's just unrealistic. It doesn't mean the people are bad; they just see you and they get all excited and it starts drawing attention to where you end up doing an autograph session at the mall. It's not a big glamorous life, but when I was racing in the Busch Series I thought it would be. Once I got in this position, I realized I couldn't do all the normal things I was used to doing.