Smoke-in! Tony Stewart wins first career NHRA race and he does it the hard way

Instead of racing just one opponent, Stewart had to beat three drivers in the final round at the 4-Wide Nationals Sunday in Las Vegas to capture Top Alcohol Dragster honors

Jerry Bonkowski | Apr 16, 2023

Smoke-in! Tony Stewart wins first career NHRA race and he does it the hard way /

He's won in IndyCar, dirt/sprint car racing, and of course is a NASCAR Hall of Famer. But until Sunday, Tony Stewart was still looking for his first NHRA win in the Top Alcohol Dragster category.

Well, that drought is over, and the man nicknamed "Smoke" did it the hard way -- actually, the hardest way any driver can win a race. Instead of just Stewart and one single opponent, Tony had to reach the finish line first against three -- COUNT 'EM, THREE -- other opponents.

After all, this was the 4-Wide NHRA Nationals at The Strip, part of the Las Vegas Motor Speedway complex.

Of course, rumors are abounding that Stewart will jump up to the kings of the sport, Top Fuel, next season, but he's not committing to anything. For now, he's just going to enjoy Sunday's huge win -- and you can do the same by watching the following video, courtesy of NHRA:

Published Apr 16, 2023

JERRY BONKOWSKI

@JerryBonkowski is an award-winning writer/columnist/editor who has specialized primarily in motorsports -- most notably coverage of NASCAR, IndyCar and NHRA -- for much of his 30-plus-year career. He has worked full-time for many of the largest media brands including USA Today, ESPN, Yahoo and NBC. He started AutoRacingDigest.com in partnership with Sports Illustrated in 2022 and serves as the site's editor and publisher. He also is a regular contributor to Autoweek.com and NASCAR.com. Follow Jerry on Twitter @JerryBonkowski