Tony Stewart’s anti-blocking actions and comments at Infineon Raceway did nothing to detract from his image with NASCAR fans. In fact, it may have enhanced it.
Tony Stewart Gets Loud, Positive Fan Reaction At Daytona International Speedway
Stewart received the second-most crowd noise in this week’s Gluckometer, the highest rating since he topped the ratings at Texas. The ratings are based on decibel readings from a handheld decibel meter used when drivers are introduced to the crowd before the race.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. got the most noise of any driver – it is Daytona, after all – and Kyle Busch dropped to fourth this week. The crowd wasn’t as vocal as usual for Busch, likely because his qualifying position was so far back (the fans get louder as drivers closer to the pole position are introduced).
One of the biggest surprises: The fans had a very subdued reaction for five-time champ Jimmie Johnson. We’re not sure why that was the case.
Here are the full noise ratings from Daytona International Speedway:
| Driver | dB | Type of Noise | Explanation | |||
| 1 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 89.9 | Cheers | It's Daytona. Duh. | ||
| 2 | Tony Stewart | 87.8 | Cheers | Approval for Sonoma actions? | ||
| 3 | Jeff Gordon | 87.6 | Cheers | Gordon's thoughts on the subject | ||
| 4 | Kyle Busch | 86.5 | Boos | Crowd wasn't warmed up yet | ||
| 5 | Carl Edwards | 86.0 | Cheers | Night went south after this | ||
| 6 | Kevin Harvick | 84.1 | Cheers | Fans had ingested many Buds by this time | ||
| T7 | Trevor Bayne | 84.0 | Cheers | Daytona 500 winner returns | ||
| T7 | Mark Martin | 84.0 | Cheers | Pole-sitter | ||
| T9 | Jimmie Johnson | 82.9 | Mostly cheers | Very mild reaction; not sure why | ||
| T9 | David Reutimann | 82.9 | Cheers | Cheers for Florida driver |
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