Tony Stewart returning to NASCAR competition this weekend at Atlanta

Tony Stewart will return to competition at this weekend’s NASCAR event at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Stewart-Haas Racing announced Thursday.

A three-time NASCAR champion, Stewart has missed three consecutive races since his involvement in the Aug. 9 death of Kevin Ward Jr. during a sprint car race at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park.

Ward was on the track when Stewart’s car struck and killed him. The 20-year-old’s death remains under investigation; however, the Ontario County (N.Y.) Sheriff’s department has said that there is no evidence to suggest “criminal intent” on Stewart’s part. A sheriff’s office spokeswoman told SB Nation Thursday there is no update on the status of the investigation.

Stewart has been in seclusion since the accident. SHR officials described Stewart as “stricken with grief” and not in condition to race. The team said the decision to return would be Stewart’s and made on a week-to-week basis.

Coinciding with his return, Stewart will conduct a press conference along with SHR vice president Brett Frood at 1 p.m. ET Friday at Atlanta. Stewart has not spoken publicly since Ward’s death. NASCAR president Mike Helton will address the media at 2 p.m. ET.

In a statement released by NASCAR, the sanctioning body said it supports Stewart’s return.

“Tony Stewart has received all necessary clearances required to return to all racing activities, and therefore is eligible to compete this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway,” said NASCAR vice president Steve O’Donnell. “NASCAR has remained in constant contact with his race team, and we will stay very close to this situation as Stewart returns to competition.”

Unless a waiver is granted, NASCAR requires a driver must attempt to either qualify or race in all points events if they are to be eligible for Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.

Because Stewart did not qualify nor race at Michigan International Speedway or Bristol Motor Speedway, he would need an exemption along with a win at either Atlanta or the regular-season finale at Richmond International Raceway to qualify. NASCAR has not stated whether Stewart will receive a waiver, nor has SHR said if it requested an exemption.

Regan Smith and Jeff Burton have filled in during Stewart’s absence. Smith was a last-minute replacement Aug. 10 at Watkins Glen International, while Burton drove Stewart’s No. 14 car in subsequent races.

Several drivers, including Burton and SHR teammate Kevin Harvick, have been vocal in support of Stewart. Burton and Harvick criticized how the media was portraying Stewart and said he deserved the benefit of the doubt and didn’t believe Stewart would have done anything intentional to harm Ward.

“I’ve known Tony Stewart for a long time,” Harvick said on Aug. 17. “You look, you know, you see what happened. I still don’t believe that he even knew that he ran into that car. I know for sure that Tony Stewart is not going to run over somebody that’s on a race track. I don’t think there’s anybody in this garage that would. It would be hard to find somebody in the racing world that could point that car, just run somebody over.”