{"id":21212,"date":"2016-11-21T11:29:07","date_gmt":"2016-11-21T18:29:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/?p=21212"},"modified":"2016-11-22T21:04:22","modified_gmt":"2016-11-23T04:04:22","slug":"the-smoke-has-been-extinguished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/2016\/11\/21\/the-smoke-has-been-extinguished\/","title":{"rendered":"The &#8220;Smoke&#8221; Has Been Extinguished!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a title=\"Tony Stewart\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/24515259@N04\/30990039986\/in\/photolist-Pdu4df-Eug3zg-EUxTMR-Eug2kx-F3JRd6-BHUfKp-CvNUmm-uH8jQX-tLdopQ-uEPCbs-uk2Knm-uB5h5L-uk1KK6-uwaa6L-uwa3Xd-kP1grH-ueXz1h-tzHsUP-twpEGS-utCF8H-usXNpL-utzXCx-utwRJV-uqRQBZ-u9gxdQ-uotp3E-pK9tb5-q17m7J-qoeYFv-q2Bvjq-q2trCM-pK65oL-kNNP9x-kP2yWv-kP1qHZ-e22MAL-e1W7fD-e1xWrL-e1rCwe-f7oHMg-fyDqWw-bqyLTd-bqyKrW-bCJXvZ-bypnir-aErCaF-dYQa1Y-dsj4AQ-bCK1xx-bkLZrY\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/c3.staticflickr.com\/6\/5655\/30990039986_b5abc03e4b_z.jpg\" alt=\"Tony Stewart\" width=\"640\" height=\"424\" \/><\/a><script src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><strong>Date: <\/strong>Nov. 20, 2016<\/p>\n<p><strong>Event:\u00a0<\/strong>NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season Finale (Round 36 of 36)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Series:<\/strong> NASCAR Sprint Cup Series<\/p>\n<p><strong>Location: <\/strong>Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Start\/Finish:\u00a0<\/strong>11th\/22nd (Running, completed 266 of 268 laps)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Point Standing:<\/strong> 15th with 2,211 points<\/p>\n<p><strong>Winner: <\/strong>Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports in overtime (Chevrolet)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Champion:<\/strong> Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports (Chevrolet)<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The curtain came down to loud applause early Sunday evening at <strong>Homestead-Miami Speedway<\/strong> when <strong>Tony Stewart<\/strong> walked off the NASCAR stage for the final time as a Sprint Cup Series driver, ending a career that included three championships and 49 victories.<\/p>\n<p>Stewart drove his No. 14 Always a Racer\/Mobil 1 Chevrolet for <strong>Stewart-Haas Racing<\/strong> (SHR) to a 22nd-place finish in his 618th and final race on the 1.5-mile south Florida high banks Sunday in the sport\u2019s 2016 season finale.<\/p>\n<p>Overshadowing Stewart\u2019s finish was the NASCAR community\u2019s weekend farewell to a garage stalwart for the last 18 years.\u00a0Stewart said he could \u201cfeel it\u201d throughout his three days in Florida.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople I haven\u2019t talked to for a long time, people that are friends that I haven\u2019t seen or heard of from a long time, reached out this week, and it\u2019s been pretty cool,\u201d said Stewart, who visited the media center for a final time as a driver and took a group picture with every crewmember present that he\u2019d ever worked with <span class=\"aBn\" tabindex=\"0\" data-term=\"goog_1965747899\"><span class=\"aQJ\">Friday<\/span><\/span> afternoon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNothing in particular really struck a nerve, but it\u2019s just the overall support from everybody was really awesome,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>After holding a special place on the prerace grid, honors at driver introductions and leading a parade lap behind a No. 14 banner, Stewart started Sunday\u2019s season finale in 11th, driving a special paint scheme that carried each SHR employee\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n<p>The No. 14 held its own in the early going before going down a lap to the leader prior to the 100-lap mark. The crew used each pit stop to improve the handling and made progress throughout the race.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m still having fun out here,\u201d joked Stewart as he and half the field were a lap down racing for the free pass at lap 125.<\/p>\n<p>Stewart and crew gambled on pit strategy with 100 laps to go by not pitting while others gave up track position to visit pit lane for fresher tires. The strategy moved Stewart from 34th to 23rd, but he fell down a second lap to the leaders. Only 13 cars raced on the lead lap at the time.<\/p>\n<p>As the sun set, the intensity picked up along with the speeds. However, despite several strategic gambles in the closing laps, Stewart could never regain either of the lost laps and finished two laps down.<\/p>\n<p>Stewart ends an impressive final season 15th in points with an SHR team led by crew chief <strong>Mike Bugarewicz<\/strong>. They combined for five top-five and eight<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"CToWUd a6T\" tabindex=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/ci4.googleusercontent.com\/proxy\/Ea-tBaGPaSdGryz73m3j1fJum3YXesHBLmux56ULzpgLd6dhMnEOuXPIPCPcvh8nVYJD_QTHTC6s4Al01JIPmF6r-ACIvDtOpJAS7HcRBrTE-16R4NQkknx4eqZAVCVpA7nah_-wJr27x1CgP4AQmWVdTd2SkuSd38XtFRg=s0-d-e1-ft#http:\/\/staticapp.icpsc.com\/icp\/loadimage.php\/mogile\/1568606\/ce87b45715a35f8af6b364409c942883\/image\/jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"305\" height=\"180\" align=\"left\" \/>top-10 finishes, including Stewart\u2019s final Sprint Cup Series victory in June at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway. Stewart finishes his career with 187 top-fives, 308 top-10s, 15 poles and 12,815 laps led.<\/p>\n<p>Fans and competitors will remember Stewart for more than statistics. The Columbus, Indiana, native who grew up on the dirt short tracks of the Midwest brought an authenticity to NASCAR rarely found in any professional sport. He summarized the philosophy that made him one of the most popular drivers in the sport\u2019s history:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI always fought for what I believed in, whether it was safety for other drivers or etiquette that was going on on the racetrack or whatever; I always fought for what I believed in. At the end of the day I can sleep all right knowing that is why I did it. It wasn\u2019t because I was trying to be a jerk or something like that, I just always spoke my mind and fought for what I believed in,\u201d said the sport\u2019s 13th winningest driver.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of fun,\u201d Stewart said. \u201cThe great thing is I\u2019m not really going anywhere. In the big picture what is changing really isn\u2019t in my big picture \u2013 it\u2019s not really a huge change, because 90 percent of the stuff that I\u2019m already doing I\u2019m still going to continue to do. It\u2019s a big part obviously in the racing world, it\u2019s a big change, but for me it\u2019s not going to be that big of a change. I just look at it like it\u2019s halftime of the ballgame in all honesty. This is the end of the first half, and next season we start the second half, and it\u2019s going to be just as much fun if not more fun than this first half was. I\u2019m excited about finishing this chapter, but I\u2019m really excited about starting the next chapter next year.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"CToWUd a6T\" tabindex=\"0\" src=\"https:\/\/ci6.googleusercontent.com\/proxy\/rQvCv6N3k9dMNWm55U-6geF1SwCLOEvtsB_KysOLpbzaujFwaX7G0eZyNBhKki3zkSQPBQySKWsVBmSchDQ_biyMChe1OWxCkZ7H-VzJ317u2k6reiYPCkgJgfu386WYv-HjXOzd5tVeIWeR-sHJt_4pgxt1qXMKqu9EJhg=s0-d-e1-ft#http:\/\/staticapp.icpsc.com\/icp\/loadimage.php\/mogile\/1568606\/7a176769c837a834efa8fe9cdae94f8e\/image\/jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"267\" height=\"181\" align=\"right\" \/>Stewart will confine most of his racing to open-wheel cars on short ovals in the coming years, but his next NASCAR milestone as a driver will likely come <span class=\"aBn\" tabindex=\"0\" data-term=\"goog_1965747900\"><span class=\"aQJ\">in three years<\/span><\/span> at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kevin Harvick<\/strong>, driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John\u2019s Chevrolet SS, led the four-car SHR contingent Sunday by finishing third. It was his 17th top-five and 27th top-10 this season and his eighth top-five and 14th top-10 in 16 career Sprint Cup starts at the 1.5-mile oval.<\/p>\n<p>Harvick started from the pole for the second time this season and led 79 of the race\u2019s first 85 laps.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kurt Busch<\/strong>, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation\/Monster Energy Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 13th.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Danica Patrick<\/strong>, driver of the No. 10 TaxAct Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 19th.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Jimmie Johnson<\/strong> won the season-ending race to score his 80th career Sprint Cup victory, his fifth of the season and his first at Homestead.<\/p>\n<p>Kyle Larson finished .466 of a second behind Johnson in the runner-up spot, while Harvick, Joey Logano and Jamie McMurray rounded out the top-five. Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth, AJ Allmendinger, Denny Hamlin and Michael McDowell comprised the remainder of the top-10.<\/p>\n<p>There were seven caution periods for 33 laps. Eight drivers failed to finish the 268-lap race, which went into overtime and finished one lap beyond its scheduled distance.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson won the 2016 Sprint Cup championship, the seventh of his career, outdueling fellow Championship 4 drivers Logano, Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards. Johnson\u2019s seven career championships tie him with NASCAR Hall of Famers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt as the series leaders in titles.<\/p>\n<p>After the race, Johnson presented Stewart with the helmet he wore Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>The 2017 season kicks off <span class=\"aBn\" tabindex=\"0\" data-term=\"goog_1965747901\"><span class=\"aQJ\">Feb. 18-26<\/span><\/span> with the traditional Speedweeks at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. The 59th Daytona 500, the first points-paying race of the season, is scheduled for <span class=\"aBn\" tabindex=\"0\" data-term=\"goog_1965747902\"><span class=\"aQJ\">Feb. 26<\/span><\/span>and will be broadcast live on FOX.<\/p>\n<p><strong>TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Date: Nov. 20, 2016 Event:\u00a0NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Season Finale (Round 36 of 36) Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Location: Homestead-Miami Speedway (1.5-mile oval) Start\/Finish:\u00a011th\/22nd (Running, completed 266 of 268 &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1443],"tags":[612,8,5],"class_list":["post-21212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nascar","tag-homestead-miami-speedway","tag-stewart-haas-racing","tag-tony-stewart"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pyPEW-5w8","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21212","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21212"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21250,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21212\/revisions\/21250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/workingonmyredneck.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}