Seldom has Tony Stewart been praised for innate intelligence. Seldom has Stewart passed up a chance to poke fun at himself in that regard. His teammate and employee, Ryan Newman, said it's all a ruse.

Asked what surprised him most about Tony the Boss, Newman said, "With all due respect, he's a lot smarter than I thought he was. I knew he was intelligent as a race-car driver, but, from a business standpoint, a people standpoint, not that I never gave him any credit I just didn't know how to give him credit. "I give him a lot more credit now because of the things I've seen him do with the people around him. That's probably the biggest thing." -- Gaston Gazette