Tony Stewart: The Judgment of Sonoma

Sonoma, Calif., is a vigorous grape-producing countryside at the center of the state’s robust wine industry, considered by many to be the birthplace of wine-making in the Golden State. Together with neighboring Napa, Calif., they produce what is widely regarded as some of the world’s finest wines. Playing no small part in placing Northern California in its esteemed place in the field of wine production was the 1976 Paris Wine Tasting, better known as the Judgment of Paris.

The Judgment of Paris was a blind wine tasting that pitted California’s best offerings against French wines, recognized by most of the world as untouchable, at least at the time. It wasn’t supposed to be a contest at all. California’s burgeoning wine makers were not supposed to be able to hold a candle to the superlative works of France’s finest, but those supercilious opinions couldn’t hold up in the field of play as California wines took first place in both red and white categories, laying the groundwork for the thriving industry that exists today.

Thirteen years after earning its place among wine-producing appellations, Sonoma was on the map yet again due to another competitive event. It was believed to be one more mismatch as it paired two worlds that could not have been more different – NASCAR and wine country. There was no panel of judges, and participants were in clear view when Sonoma Raceway hosted the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for the first time on June 11, 1989. While on paper the two appeared to be an odd coupling, wine country and NASCAR have combined for some incredible shows during the last 25 years.

Enjoying the fruits of that successful match on more than one occasion has been none other than Tony Stewart, a two-time Sprint Cup winner at Sonoma who enters Sunday’s Toyota/SaveMart 350k 10th in the championship point standings thanks to a four-race stretch that has seen him finish seventh, first, fourth and fifth.

The driver of the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing has played a significant role in many of Sonoma’s exciting races. His name appears often in the track’s history books, and in the new-age history that is NASCAR’s loop data, Stewart ranks first or second in a number of statistical categories for the 1.99-mile road course.

Stewart has made 14 Sprint Cup starts at Sonoma, where in addition to his two wins (2001 and 2005) he has a pole (2002), three second-place finishes, five top-fives and nine top-10s. He has an average finish of 10.9 and has only failed to finish on the lead lap one time – the track’s 2011 race where the Indiana native ended up on the wrong end of a run-in with driver Brian Vickers with less than 25 laps to go. Stewart went from scoring a top-five finish to a career-worst road-course finish of 39th.

While Stewart’s traditional stats speak for themselves, an overview of his position in several loop data categories reinforces the fact that at the end of the day, Stewart’s road-course attributes make him a Road Scholar.

The three-time Sprint Cup champion leads all drivers in the categories of fastest drivers early in a run (90.375 mph), fastest laps run (79), green-flag speed (89.877 mph), laps in the top-15 (706) and speed in traffic (88.945 mph). He ranks second in average running position (9.983) and fastest drivers late in a run (89.437 mph) for an overall driver rating of 107.5 – a close second to Kurt Busch with the best overall driver rating of 107.8.

And Stewart’s road course success isn’t limited to the track in Northern California, as there is a second road course in Watkins Glen, N.Y., which plays host to the Sprint Cup Series in early August. Of Stewart’s 48 career Sprint Cup victories, seven have been won on road courses – two at Sonoma and five at Watkins Glen. While wins are what everyone remembers, the rest of Stewart’s road-course stats are remarkable on their own merit. Between Sonoma and Watkins Glen, Stewart has made 28 career starts in which he has 12 top-fives, 19 top-10s and has led a total of 307 laps to go with his seven wins.

Through the last 25 years Sonoma has earned its place in the annals of NASCAR history, serving as a true test of driver versatility. Stewart is the epitome of versatility, having won in nearly everything, from stock cars and Indy cars to dirt modifieds and open-wheel Sprint, Midget and Silver Crown cars. Just as Stewart has proven victorious on pavement and dirt, he’s proven to be a winner when a racetrack features left and right turns. In his 15th trip to the 10-turn Sonoma road course, Stewart intends to come out on top in the Judgment of Sonoma.

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