NASCAR Atlanta 2014: Tony Stewart’s return ends in early crash

Tony Stewart’s first race back ended prematurely when a tire failure sent him into the wall just past halfway Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

The three-time NASCAR champion was running 21st when his right-front tire exploded in Turn 2 on Lap 172. Stewart’s No. 14 car incurred heavy damage and he immediately headed to the garage for repairs.

“Sorry guys, you deserved better than this,” Stewart radioed to his crew.

Atlanta was Stewart’s first race following his involvement in the death of driver Kevin Ward Jr. during a sprint car race Aug. 9 at a track in upstate New York. Ward was walking on the track after a crash when the right rear tire of Stewart’s car struck Ward and killed him.

Stewart went into seclusion, missing three races. Speaking publicly for the first time since the incident, an emotional Stewart read a prepared statement expressing his sorrow Friday. During pre-race driver introductions Stewart received overwhelming support from fans in attendance.

“This is been one of the toughest tragedies I’ve ever had to deal with, both professionally and personally,” Stewart said Friday. “This is something that will definitely affect my life forever.”

The Oral-B 500 began with much promise for Stewart. He quickly moved from his 12th starting position to as high as fourth.

But Stewart’s night turned sour following a Lap 121 restart when Kyle Busch washed up the track and pushed him into the wall. The contact knocked Stewart’s alignment out, necessitating several pit stops.

“I went into today with some pretty high hopes of finishing well and possibly coming out of here with a win but it just didn’t work out in our favor,” said Chad Johnston, Stewart’s crew chief. “We got into a little trouble with the 18 and got into the outside wall, knocked the toe out of it, and a lot of heavy right side damage.”

The incident with Busch directly attributed to Stewart cutting a tire, Johnston said.

Winless on the year, Stewart will need a victory Sept. 6 at Richmond International Raceway -- the regular season finale -- if he is to qualify for the Chase for the Sprint Cup. A three-time Cup champion in 2002, 2005 and 2011, Stewart missed the Chase last year after breaking his leg in an Aug. 5 sprint car crash, sidelining him for the final 15 NASCAR events.

“We thought we had a shot at winning and with two races to go to get into the Chase this was one of the two chances obviously left to get it done and to get into the Chase,” Johnston said. “We will just have to lick our wounds and go onto Richmond and see if we can’t do it there and if so it will be pretty exciting.”