Tony Stewart talks about his accident for first time as interim driver named

February 12, 2016 Greg Engle Main Page, NASCAR News Top Story, Top Stories 0

Tony Stewart answered questions via social media Friday morning. Periscope (used with permission)

Tony Stewart answered questions via social media Friday morning.
Periscope (used with permission)

Stewart-Haas Racing said Friday morning that Brian Vickers will be the interim driver of its No. 14 Chevrolet SS for all the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series events during Speedweeks Feb. 12-21 at Daytona International Speedway. Vickers will practice the car Friday as the team readies for Saturday night’s Sprint Unlimited.

Vickers was introduced as the driver during a press conference at Daytona International Speedway. He is a three-time winner in the Sprint Cup Series and was the 2003 NASCAR Xfinity Series champion. His best Sprint Cup finish at Daytona is a second-place in the 2014 Coke Zero 400. His first career Sprint Cup victory came in 2006 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. The 2016 Daytona 500 will mark Vickers’ ninth start in the season opening Sprint Cup event.

“I told myself that if I came back to racing, particularly the Sprint Cup Series, I wanted to be in a car that had a good chance to win,” Vickers said. “I hate Tony’s not here, but I’m honored to keep his seat warm until he gets back. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him and wish him a quick recovery.”

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Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.