Stewart’s run of success at the Rumble kicked into high gear after he purchased his black No. 2 Munchkin midget from renowned car-builder Mike Fedorcak in 2004, with multiple wins pushing the popularity of the unique machines into the stratosphere as Stewart’s NASCAR renown grew as well.
But Stewart dismissed the idea mentioned by Fedorcak during the race weekend that the Munchkins grew in popularity because of him being the driver.
“I disagree completely with that notion; I think Mike and Thursday Night Thunder (on ESPN) made it popular, when he built a car that was so far ahead of its time technologically and put it out there in front of the world,” explained Stewart. “He was so much smarter than any other car builder at that point in time.”
“I enjoy driving the car because it’s just a fun car to drive. The thought that Mike put into it … when I first bought the car, I literally bought it the night before I raced it, and when I took it home, I had it on stands and just kept looking at the stages of the engineering that Mike put the car through. I was just amazed by it. It’s just a fun race car. They don’t meet specs to race outside, but man when we race them indoors like this, I enjoy the heck out of it.”
After sweeping the Rumble in 2011, when he won both national midget A-Mains, Stewart has now gone winless in his last four feature starts at the Allen County Memorial Expo Center.
That means Stewart’s competitive fire burns as brightly as ever, but he was non-committal about himself driving the car next winter due to his recent engagement.
“I like not having plans,” Stewart admitted with a laugh. “I know we’re gonna keep working on the car, but I’m engaged now, and who knows … I might be married by this time next year. She’s working on the date – I don’t carry when we get married – I just made her promise that we wouldn’t do it during race season.”
“That leaves December as a potential range of dates, so we’ll see what she’ll let me get away with … but for a girl that doesn’t know anything about racing, she sure knows my passion for it. She’s not passionate about it yet, but she’s very tolerant about what I want to do in racing and knows how much it means to me.”
“I won’t say for sure whether you’ll see me back here next year or not until it gets closer, but I’m determined to win here again, I can tell you that much.”
About the Writer
Jacob Seelman is the Managing Editor of Race Chaser Online and creator of the Motorsports Madness radio show, airing at 7 p.m. Eastern every Monday on the Performance Motorsports Network.
Seelman grew up in the sport, watching his grandparents co-own the RaDiUs Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team in the 1990s.
The 23-year-old is currently studying Broadcast Journalism at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C., and is also serving as the full-time tour announcer for the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series.
Email Jacob at: editor@racechaseronline.com
Follow on Twitter: @Speed77Radio or @JacobSeelman77
Email Race Chaser Online: news@racechaseronline.com
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