“They won them without SVG there”: NASCAR insider reacts to Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart’s road course legacy

NASCAR insider Tommy Baldwin weighed in on Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart's road course legacy amid Shane van Gisbergen's recent dominance. He pointed out that elite road course specialists like SVG weren't around to challenge the predominantly oval-focused stars of yesteryear.

Van Gisbergen's road course prowess comes a no surprise at tracks like Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez and the Chicago Street Course, since the rest of the field isn't really used to those layouts yet. But to win at Sonoma Raceway, a track where many Cup Series regulars have plenty of experience, rings in SVG as possibly one of the all-time greats in road courses.

During the latest podcast episode of Door Bumper Clear, Freddie Kraft opened up the debate on van Gisbergen's current status amidst all-time record holders in road courses.

"Jeff Gordon had nine road course wins. Tony had seven. They only ran two a year. You know, you let them guys run five a year, they're gonna stack up a bunch," he said [0:45 onwards].

Baldwin responded to Kraft's claims with a blunt statement.

"They won them without SVG there. SVG is a really good road racer. That's it. End of story," he replied.

SVG's three wins this year matched Tony Stewart's record of grabbing the same number of wins in 33 Cup starts. Stewart achieved the feat back in 1999 during his rookie season with Joe Gibbs Racing.

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When Tony Stewart professed his love for road course racing

In 2017, when Tony Stewart announced Aric Almirola as the new #10 driver for Stewart-Haas Racing, he revealed that his return to stock car racing wouldn't be in a Cup car. The former Cup Series champion shared how he was disenchanted by NASCAR's focus on aerodynamics rather than driver control, ultimately driving him away from the series.

However, he also mentioned his interest in making Xfinity start on road courses

"If I come back, it won't be in a Cup car. Everyone has talked about me running a Truck at Eldora. And you know, there are some road course races. I loved road course racing during my time as a Cup driver, so there are some road courses on Xfinity races that I've never been to and I would like to try. I've explored doing that somewhere down the road," he said via Autoweek.

Tony Stewart retired from the sport in 2016 and transitioned to off-track roles at Stewart-Haas Racing. His final season saw him qualify for the playoffs after an emotional win at Sonoma Raceway, since he'd gone winless for three years before the triumph.

He currently competes in the NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Series under his own team, Tony Stewart Racing. He recently won his first Top Fuel event at Las Vegas and followed it up with yet another victory at Joliet, Illinois, while he leads the points standings with 52 points ahead of his competition.