“Hit My Head, Got a Concussion”: Tony Stewart’s Moment of Reckoning That Made Him Relook His Way of Living As Revealed To NASCAR Veteran in 2020

NASCAR is a sport that requires a very fit body. When a driver races at speeds upward of 200mph, their body has to endure a lot of physical stress. Tony Stewart was one of the best drivers NASCAR ever saw, and he got to that peak because of all the work he put into the car and into his fitness.

Stewart discussed how his body had ‘changed’ since his time racing, in a 2020 episode of the Waltrip Unfiltered Podcast. He said, “It’s funny because I was giving somebody a tour at my shop. And I’ve got a bunch of the cars that I drove in my career.” 

Tony Stewart and his troubles fitting in

“So one of them was a car from ‘99, my rookie year in the Cup Series, and they were like, ‘There’s no way you can fit in that’ and I’m like ‘I betcha I can fit in it.‘ I did, but once I got in there, I couldn’t breathe. So I had no idea how much from ‘99 till I retired in 2016, how much I had grown, let’s say. And it’s something I gotta get working on myself here,” he said with a smile on his face. 

He also shared, “I’ll be 50 next year, and I was riding a one-wheel with my girlfriend, and the battery died on it. And I slammed on the ground, hit my head, got a concussion, black eye. All kinds of crazy stuff.” 

“I haven’t been racing for a while and I’m trying to get back in the car for this weekend. I’m just wanting to make sure that the steering wheel is gonna fit on there without rubbing my belly. T hat’s my goal for the weekend and getting back in shape. When we get our age, we gotta work a little harder at it.”

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At the end of it all, Stewart did manage to fit himself in the car for the next weekend!

A very eventful lockdown for Stewart

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Hearing Stewart talking about his girlfriend in 2020 is reminiscent of how the couple actually came to date each other. The couple eventually even got married. Stewart and Leah Pruett disclosed that story in a recent episode of Mike Wallace’s Fast Car 2 NASCAR podcast.

Mike Wallace asked Pruett, “How did the two of you meet each other?” She answered, “But to answer your question real quick–we started dating right before the pandemic started, so our second date, which was, I think, March 9.”

“I was in Indiana collecting a few of my things because I used to live there full time, so I said, ‘Hey I’m going to my house in Arizona. Would you like to come for the weekend?’ So he packs up 4 days and then the world shuts down, and he stays here for 4 months. In a row. That was our second date,” she revealed. 

One of the hosts cheekily said, “Now he told me he planned that like that,” to which the other asked, “So he’s responsible for the pandemic?” He replied jokingly, “I know the guy for a long time. He’s pulled out bigger feats than that before.”

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What a great way – if you’re going to be stuck for 4 months. You’d rather be stuck with someone you love!