NASCAR legend Tony Stewart excited to back with his new venture

Tony Stewart recently expressed excitement over his upcoming duty as a broadcaster with Fox Sports at the Indy 500. This will mark the former NASCAR driver's return to the IndyCar Series, where he won a championship in 1997.

Before going full-time to the NASCAR Cup Series in 1999, Stewart ran in the open-wheel racing series for a couple of years and won a title with Team Menard. The now 53-year-old driver retired from the stock car racing series in 2016 with three championships, including one as a team owner, which Kevin Harvick won.

Tony Stewart, who now competes in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association), will provide his insights in the 2025 Indy 500 as a broadcaster. The event will mark Fox Sports' inaugural coverage of The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

“Excited to be back behind the mic with the @IndyCarOnFOX team for the 109th running of the #Indy500,” Stewart wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The Indiana native will be joined in the Fox broadcasting team by former NASCAR driver Danica Patrick, who drove for the now-defunct Stewart-Haas Racing in the 2010s and had an IndyCar Series stint earlier in her career. The former teammates will be accompanied by the media company's veteran sportscaster, Chris Myers.

Meanwhile, Will Buxton, known as Formula 1's presenter, will lead the play-by-play commentary alongside former IndyCar Series drivers James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell. NASCAR reporter Jamie Little will be covering the race on pit road with Kevin Lee, Georgia Henneberry, and Jack Harvey.

Tony Stewart driving the #2 Team Menard in the 1997 Indy 500 - Source: Getty

The 109th running of the Indy 500 will take place on May 25 at 12:00 p.m. ET. NASCAR driver Kyle Larson will join in the prestigious event before arriving at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600 later in the day as part of his second attempt at The Double.

---

“[NASCAR] is not what it used to be”: Tony Stewart on decision to leave NASCAR

Last year, Tony Stewart spoke with Kevin Harvick about his decision to leave NASCAR as a team owner. Aside from the ever-changing priorities, Stewart said the stock car racing series wasn't the same as it was during their time.

In an episode of Harvick's Happy Hour podcast, the former NASCAR driver said:

“It's a tough decision, but things in life change, your priorities change, and variables outside of your control change as well. You and I have been around for a long time, it [NASCAR] is not what it used to be. It is drastically different.” [19:58]

After citing factors like the ongoing 23XI Racing-Front Row Motorsports lawsuit against NASCAR, the three-time champ added:

“Its not a direction that I want to be a part of. This is the right time, this was never a part of a masterplan, as this year has gone on, this has become very clear that this the right time for me to get out of the sport.” [20:48]

Tony Stewart's decision to exit NASCAR after the 2024 season marked the end of his three-decade career across the sport's three national series as a driver and team owner. His former co-owner, Gene Haas, retained the team as Haas Factory Team with Cole Custer as its sole Cup driver.