Today’s race is the last. Not just of the 2008 Sprint Cup season, but the last day for Tony Stewart. This is his last day in the #20 Home Depot Car. His last day with crew chief of 10 years Greg Zipadelli. His last day with Joe Gibbs Racing. It’s the end of an era - I can’t say I’m not happy for Smoke, getting out there and being an owner/driver. I can’t say I’m not happy that he’s getting to do something he wants to do. But I can’t say I’m happy that he’s leaving JGR, Zippy, and the #20 either.

I know I’m being silly and sappy here, but I have a distinct feeling I might just cry when the race is over. Because once it’s over, it’s over. No more Tony in Home Depot orange & black. No more Tony and Zippy bickering at each other on the radio. No more looking for the #20 next to Stewart on the leaderboard at the top of my TV screen.

Next year it’ll be Office Depot/Old Spice red & black. Tony & Doug (I think that’s his name) bickering at each other on the radio (can the new dude handle Tony - I guess we’ll just have to see ). Looking for the #14 next to Stewart on the leaderboard at the top of my TV screen.  Looking for Ryan Newman and Tony to be working together at tracks where you need a drafting buddy.

It’s definitely the end of an era but also the beginning of a new one. While I’m sad to see this one end, I’m also a little excited for the new one to begin. There’s only one thing marring the end of this era - JGR’s choice of replacement driver. Logano hasn’t shown a whole lot of the reason they call him Sliced Bread in the Cup series and frankly, I hope he gets it together next year, because he’s got some big shoes to fill and frankly, like Karah said, I don’t think he can even fill one of Tony’s pant legs, much less his shoes when it comes to the legacy of the #20 Home Depot car.

It has been confirmed that the Army is set up to sponsor Ryan Newman’s #39 car with Stewart-Haas Racing next year for 23 races. The deal is for 3 years - basically set up to be year-by-year and renewable for the next year at the Army’s option at the end of the 2009 & 2010 seasons. Tony Stewart is reported to be working on a primary sponsor for the remaining races.

This does pose the question for me - if the Army has gone with Stewart-Haas, and Office Depot has also gone with Stewart-Haas, then who is Rousch going to have for Carl Edwards next year, and who will be Aric Almirola’s sponsor next year at DEI? Interesting goings on here - I’ll have to stay tuned for more word on who those primary sponsors will be for the 2009 season.

Well, now isn’t this a surprise? Did you get the sarcasm? Everyone with a brain knew that Logano would be Stewart’s replacement. It’s not news people. News would have been if someone else had replaced Stewart. Let’s be perfectly honest, we all knew it was coming, just like we all knew Newman would sign with Stewart-Haas. NASCAR can be pretty transparent about these things.

My biggest worry is that they’re pushing Logano too far, too fast. I mean, yeah, the kid’s got talent, but still. Is he really ready for Cup? I’m not so sure he is. It’ll be funny to see a rookie bar on the back of the 20 next year, but I really worry that Gibbs is pushing the boy too far, too fast.

Well, Carl Edwards won his second Sprint cup race - I’m wanting to say in a row, but my head is pounding and I’m not feeling well and don’t feel like looking. LOL In any case I’m not a big Carl fan and  wish Kyle would have won. While I don’t agree with Kyle bumping Carl after the race like that, it just goes to show that Carl is no better - and I say that if Kyle is punished for bumping Carl, Carl should be punished for retaliating and spinning Kyle  like that.

So the #4 is out and it’s the #39? Ok, whatever. As long as Newman has a car with Stewart-Haas I don’t care. And I hear that Monday is crunch time for JGR and they’ll be revealing Tony’s replacement. If it’s not Joey Logano, I’ll be surprised. Honestly, we can all see it coming, just like we could all see Newman signing with Stewart-Haas. Obvious much? LOL

In any case, there we have it. Congrats to Carl, Keslowski for Nationwide, and Kyle for Truck Series.

Congrats to Tony for the 2nd place finish on Sunday’s race. You’ll have to excuse the lateness of this post, as frankly, I work too much to remember to post promptly. As it is, I’m going to have to get to bed very soon, so I won’t be writing much.

So Scott Riggs is hoping to become a part of Stewart Haas Racing. Let me think here, first off, after reading the article on NASCAR.com about it, I find it hilarious that Riggs thinks the “new management” isn’t a big enough man to come tell him that he’s out of a job. Apparently Riggs hasn’t met Tony lately. Last I checked, Tony wasn’t afraid to open his mouth about anything.  Frankly, if he really was worried about whether or not he has a job at Stewart Haas racing, he’d be constantly asking Tony and the rest of Stewart Haas racing if he still has a job. But he already knows the answer to that - no, he doesn’t. He knows he needs to find a new team.

But the saddest part about it is, maybe he wouldn’t have to worry about those “unanswered questions” if he actually performed on the track. Now I am the first to admit that considering the #5’s reputation the past few years regardless of driver, that Casey Mears got a raw deal. But it stands to reason - if you don’t perform, you lose your spot. Tony isn’t going to put himself on a team with a driver who doesn’t perform. Easy as that.

I just wish they’d announce who Tony’s teammate is going to be for certain and  officially soon. Because frankly, I want to know if it’s Newman and if it is, if BK is one of his sponsors and if so, who is the other one. It’s all rumors and speculation - although my source was FoxSports so there you have that. Even NASCAR.com has it speculated that Newman is going to Tony’s teammate. LOL

Ok, off to bed. This turned out much longer than I expected.

I was over at Diary of a Track Bunny and saw this link to go check a video of Tony knocking a headset off a USAC official’s head and shoving another USAC official. It got him a $10,000 fine, but you know what? I’m glad to see that Tony still has some fight left in him.

I don’t know. I guess I just like the “bad boys.” The ones who get all the fines because they’re always cussing, always losing their tempers, etc. Maybe it’s because I’m that way too. Who knows, but I’m so glad to see that Tony’s still got some fight in him. I guess those “anger management” classes only get you so far.

And speaking of Tony - I like the new paint schemes, although the Old Spice car wasn’t the right shade of red. I’m used to the Nationwide car I guess. What’s funny is that I’d figured Old Spice would go Cup but I hadn’t figured on Office Depot being the other sponsor. Plus, rumor has it that Ryan Newman is about to become Tony’s driver for the #4 Chevrolet, with Burger King as a possible part time sponsor. It will be quite interesting to see if Ryan actually signs with Tony, and if he does, who his sponsors will be.

Tony Stewart Fans like myself won’t be cheering the #20 next year, and probably won’t be bleeding orange and black anymore. It has been announced that Tony has been released from his Joe Gibbs Racing contract starting next year and will be joining Haas Racing. Tony has purchased a portion of the racing team and will now be a driver/owner.

Joey Logano is expected to take the #20 Sprint Cup car, crew chief Greg Zipadelli, and the Home Depot sponsorship. While this makes me sad, Tony knows what he’s doing and frankly, I wish him all the best.

Ryan Newman is said to be in the running for the 2nd car at Stewart Haas Racing, a move I’d actually like to see as I do like Newman.

I knew I shouldn’t have done that afghan in “Tony Stewart” colors yet. Good luck to all involved in this move, that truly, shouldn’t be all that shocking to anyone.