RACING LEGEND TONY STEWART SET TO DRIVE IN NHRA'S TOP FUEL CATEGORY IN 2024

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Dec 07, 2023, 10:49 ET

Wife Leah Pruett stepping out of Top Fuel car to focus on starting a family with Stewart

INDIANAPOLIS, Dec. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NHRA standout Leah Pruett, driver of the 11,000-horsepower Dodge Top Fuel dragster, is stepping aside from racing in 2024 to focus on starting a family with husband Tony Stewart.

Stewart will make his Top Fuel debut in 2024 on behalf of Pruett at Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) when the NHRA opens the year on March 7-10 with the NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway.

Stewart, a Hall of Fame driver who has earned 13 championships across NASCAR, INDYCAR and USAC, along with hundreds of victories on oval tracks, dirt tracks and road courses, finished second in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series sportsman ranks in 2023, earning four victories in his first full year of drag racing.

With thoughtful consideration, Pruett and crew chief Neal Strausbaugh selected Stewart as the replacement driver in Top Fuel. Stewart is humbled by the opportunity and is looking forward to growing a family with Pruett.

"I am very proud of my wife," Stewart said. "To make a decision like this has to be extremely hard. I don't think from a male's perspective that we can fully grasp it. To be a competitive, professional race car driver and have to make the decision to take yourself out of the seat to start a family is not a position most males would want to be put in. We had discussed starting a family and this was her decision. In those discussions, we concluded the timing was up to her.

"To have an opportunity like this, where you have your wife, who's also the driver, and the crew chief feel you're capable to come in and do the job is very flattering."

Pruett, a 12-time NHRA Top Fuel event winner, began her NHRA journey in the series' Junior Drag Racing League at eight years old. Pruett earned two victories in 2023 and finished the third in Top Fuel, posting the best season of her 14-year Top Fuel career.

"Drag racing has been an important part of my life," Pruett said. "Twenty-seven years of racing in the NHRA has molded who I am, and I am extremely grateful for the life it has given me. Through a long series of thought processes and a decision that did not happen overnight, I feel that stepping out of the seat right now is what's best for myself and Tony to start a family.

"I had the best finish of my entire career. To step away from that can be a challenging move, but I had already made up my mind long before we were deep in the championship hunt. Everything in my heart says that I will return to driving Top Fuel as soon as I feel ready, especially after being so close to winning it all this year. For now, I am thrilled Tony is getting a well-performing, safe car with an excellent caliber of people."

Stewart will join the two-car TSR operation in NHRA with Funny Car driver Matt Hagan, who earned the 2023 world championship, the first NHRA world title for Tony Stewart Racing and Hagan's fourth career championship. He'll jump right into a loaded Top Fuel category, which features a host of standout drivers.

"There have been so many instances in my career where I didn't feel like I was ready. There is a lot of validity to it that you're not ready until you just get in and do it," Stewart said. "As much as Leah's role is going to change with the team, she's going to be very active on the team. Part of her responsibility will be babysitting me and helping to teach me all the things I need to learn.

"This will be a massive learning experience and it will be very humbling. The Top Fuel class is arguably one of the toughest classes the NHRA has right now. There are so many quality teams and drivers in the series. It will be extremely difficult and challenging, but at the same time, I've thrived on that my whole life. I've always wanted to compete at the highest level with the highest level of teams and drivers."

For more information about NHRA, including the full 2024 schedule, please visit www.NHRA.com.

About Mission Foods
MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world's leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. For more information, please visit https://www.missionfoods.com/

About NHRA
Headquartered in San Dimas, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 21 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series and NHRA Factory Stock Showdown. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA's Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA's streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

SOURCE NHRA