Stewart taking NASCAR by storm

Dick Brinster

Thursday, Sept. 23, 1999 | 12:03 p.m.

Each clump of hair that hit the floor proved that rookie superstar Tony Stewart should stick to driving a race car. He certainly has no hope of becoming a barber.

Phil Cavali, paying for a promise to let Stewart cut his long locks if he won a race, knows that better than most. Stewart butchered Cavali's hair last weekend at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Cavali, photo editor for Winston Cup Scene magazine, began to worry when Stewart looked as if he'd win in Richmond, Va., on Sept. 11.

"I remember sitting there going, 'Come on, Bobby Labonte,' " said Cavali, who had worn shoulder-length hair since leaving the Navy in 1983.

But Stewart went on to win, and the next weekend whipped out the scissors. They might as well have been garden shears.

"I knew I was in trouble when I asked him if he knew anything about it. He said, 'No,"' Cavali said.

Cavali better be careful with his promises: Stewart's a threat to win every week.

The former Indy Racing League and USAC champion, considered by most in the sport to be the best rookie in 29 Winston Cup seasons, had hoped for a productive year. But he says the victory in Richmond gave him a high beyond what he had expected.

"People are coming over from other series to race in Winston Cup, and everybody wants to win," he said. "It's so competitive that when I won, the first thought that went through my mind was that I just beat Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Bobby Labonte and the rest of those guys. I beat the best."

When Stewart straps himself into his car Sunday at Dover Downs International Speedway, he will be one of the favorites to win the MBNA Gold 400. When he steps up to the podium to be introduced, virtually no one will get a bigger ovation.

"I had no clue it would be this way, but you can't imagine the feeling a driver gets from that kind of support," Stewart said. "When you get that kind of a reception, it's worth a 10th of a second each lap."

His haircut not withstanding, Cavali, like many in the media, is delighted by Stewart's antics.

"He's a breath of fresh air in NASCAR," Cavali said of the 28-year-old driver from Rushville, Ind. "He doesn't just say all those same old things about racing."

Indeed. There is little driverspeak in Stewart, who at each track has a knack for filling empty notebooks with useful quotes.

He hasn't always been happy with the results, saying his candor has led to some imaginative reporting.

"If you don't want a straight answer, then don't ask me a question," he said. "I am what I am. Take me or leave me. If you don't like what you get, shop around the garage. There are 50 other guys."

Stewart is quick to admit he can be at his worst after an excruciating defeat. None hurt him more than running out of gas after dominating the Jiffy Lube 300 two months ago at New Hampshire.

A distraught Stewart was not available after one of the greatest disappointments of his career. He apologized and moved on, but admits he won't always be politically correct.

"If I wanted to be a politician, I would be in Washington," he said. "If I accepted losing so easily, why would you want me to be in your race car?"

Crew chief Greg Zipadelli wouldn't. When he looks at Stewart he sees a winner worthy of all the effort the crew puts into the Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac.

"He's got the potential to win lots of races and championships," Zipadelli said.

But Stewart takes none of his early success for granted. While he feels more confident than early in the season, Stewart believes there's still a lot of work to be done.

Although he has risen to fourth in the standings - the best finish by a rookie was seventh by Jody Ridley in 1981 - Stewart knows good fortune can be fleeting.

"Next year we could get caught up in some accidents, so you can't count on anything," he said. "But we won't change our approach."

Although his goal is to be the series champion, Stewart realizes that might be a few years away. Until then, he'll just keep plugging away.

"You know what to do with something that isn't broken," he said. "Well, this isn't broken, so I'm sure not going to fix it."