When NASCAR icon Tony Stewart detailed “crazy” NHRA test in wife Leah Pruett’s drag car

Tony Stewart’s earliest steps into NHRA racing were nothing like the title-contending form he shows today. The NASCAR Hall of Famer revisited the 2022 run that convinced him he had no business trying his wife Leah Pruett’s 11,000-hp Top Fuel car.

By the time Stewart entered drag racing, he was already a four-time champion across major disciplines. Yet when he stepped into NHRA in 2022, he was the rookie again. During a 2023 Dale Jr. Download Classics episode, Dale Earnhardt Jr. asked Stewart what his intentions were.

“Everybody’s been asking that the last six months since I ran Vegas in the fall,” he said. “I don’t have any. Going back to that test session. I went and ran a test in Leah’s car with Don Schumacher, which was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done in my life... you’re driving a car that can run 330 mph. I went 318 that first test and the car was so far ahead of where my brain was.”

“There's so many things that could go wrong. But if you're not on top of it, you're never going to catch it. It'd be bad and I realized that when I left, I finally was like, "This is crazy." Cuz when we started driving different cars, you just work up to it. You just run part throttle or this and that. It doesn't work that way in drag racing,” Stewart added (55:15 onwards).

Tony Stewart explained that Leah Pruett and crew chief Neal Strasbaugh encouraged him to try the car. But nothing prepared him for how violent and unforgiving the run felt. The moment he stepped out, he realized he couldn’t even process what had happened down the racetrack.

Stewart felt he wasn't 'cut out for that car' and dropped the plans to race in it until a Top Alcohol test changed his opinion. The former NASCAR racer switched focus from Top Fuel and accepted an opportunity with McPhillips Racing in Top Alcohol.

Tony Stewart began testing in their 275-mph car, learning the mechanics, the shutdown routine, the staging process, and the discipline needed to survive the first 300 feet. The smoother learning curve kept him in the sport.

---

How three-time NASCAR champ Tony Stewart rose in NHRA following his first wild test

Tony Stewart after winning the NHRA Route 66 Nationals. Source: Imagn

Tony Stewart’s pedigree made his arrival in NHRA one of the sport’s most-watched storylines. A three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, 1997 IndyCar champion, and 2020 NASCAR Hall of Famer, he brought over two decades of experience into a completely different category.

After that 2022 Las Vegas debut, the momentum grew quickly. A year later, Stewart won the 2023 NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas. He was also voted 2023 Top Alcohol Driver of the Year and Person of the Year. He switched to Top Fuel and reached the final at Sonoma in 2024, demonstrating his ability to adapt at the highest level.

2025 has been a breakthrough season for Stewart. This year, he reached the Pomona Winternationals final and secured the regular-season championship. He won twice - in Las Vegas and in Chicago - and secured his career-first No. 1 qualifier at Bristol.

Next season, Stewart will partner with Elite Motorsports, as his wife, Leah Pruett, returns to full-time driving after stepping away to give birth to their son last year. The 2026 NHRA season will mark the first time both Stewart and Pruett race together under the Tony Stewart Racing banner.