The Dale Jr. Download

Episode Title: An Old Dog Learns New Tricks - DJD Classics w/ Tony Stewart
Release Date: November 25, 2025
Host: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (plus DJD team)
Guest: Tony Stewart
Podcast by: Dirty Mo Media, SiriusXM

Overview

In a deeply candid, wide-ranging episode, Dale Jr. sits down with NASCAR legend Tony Stewart for a heartfelt, entertaining discussion about racing, reinvention, and the ongoing journey of life on and off the track. The main theme: adapting to change and learning new tricks—whether that’s in health, career, personal life, or racing disciplines. Stewart opens up about weight loss, marriage, his transition into drag racing, ownership roles, and the enduring drive that keeps him trying new challenges at 50.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal Health & Lifestyle Transformation

[01:15–05:32]

• Stewart’s New Diet & Weight Loss Journey:
  • Uses a weekly appetite-suppressing shot, resulting in 14 pounds lost over 12 weeks.
    • “I went for 27 and a half hours before I ate my first meal... wasn’t hungry. And I’m like, why am I tired, why do I have a headache? Yeah, because I haven’t ate.” (Tony Stewart, 01:49)
  • Credits “cutting back 30%” on eating, inspired by colleagues who tried Ozempic.
  • Stewart’s wife, Leah, is highly active—hiking, biking—encouraging healthier choices.
• Dale Jr. Relates:
  • Describes fluctuating weight, the mental toll, and struggle for balance.
    • “You get depressed and get disappointed, and then you gotta bust your ass to try to lose 15 pounds… trying to find some lifestyle that will sustain what you want to be is tough. It’s not easy.” (Dale Earnhardt Jr., 03:15)
• Impact of Spouses:
  • Both Stewart and Dale Jr. note how their wives’ habits positively influence their choices and routines.

2. Roots & Relocating: Where Is Home?

[05:32–10:58]

• No Set Routine: Stewart splits time between several places—Havasu, Florida, races, and Indiana, adjusting to life after meeting Leah right before COVID.
• The Columbus, Indiana Estate:
  • Stewart explains nearly selling his custom-built home to move closer to surf/lake life.
    • “Everybody was mental at that time… people were buying any land they could find.” (Tony Stewart, 07:31)
  • The joy of nature and tranquility at home persuades him to take it off the market.
    • “Saw a deer… then two turkeys… seven elk… I turned into a kid when I went down the driveway the other day.” (Tony Stewart, 10:46)

3. Sprint Car & Series Ownership: New Chapters

[10:59–13:56]

• Current Roles:
  • Stewart owns a World of Outlaws sprint car team, the All Star Circuit of Champions (a sprint car series), and Eldora Speedway.
  • Personally, he hasn’t actively driven sprint cars in two years—feels unable to stay competitive against younger, full-time racers.
    • “If you’re going to run with those guys, you better be running 60, 70 nights a year… I don’t go to the gym. You know, at 50, it’s hard to run with those kids.” (Tony Stewart, 11:50)
• On the Need for Constant Reps:
  • Cites the extreme challenge of jumping in part time.
    • “The only way… to be competitive is to be doing it every single week.” (Dale Jr., 13:47)

4. Drivers Who Can Do Anything—Kyle Larson & The Old School

[13:56–16:36]

• The “Alien” Factor:
  • Dale Jr. draws parallels between Kyle Larson and all-time greats like Stewart himself, A.J. Foyt, and Mario Andretti.
    • “He’s the guy that can take off a month, jump right back in one, and be the fastest guy there… It’s kind of like you were in your prime.” (Dale Jr., 15:37)
  • Stewart praises Larson’s multi-discipline dominance but notes even he keeps sharp by running multiple nights a week.

5. Legend Lore: The Old Days & Tony Stories

[16:36–19:02]

• Memorable Tale:
  • Stewart once ran multiple races in a single night at Tioga/Shangri-La, scored a dramatic retaliation with a chunk of styrofoam after being wrecked, and then won other races—earning a reputation for both on-track fire and fan excitement.
    • “...You took a big old chunk of that Styrofoam and waited for him to come around. And when he did, you wedged that son of a ... right into the front!” (Tony’s friend, 17:36)
  • Stewart humorously acknowledges, “That’s life. That’s the ultimate lie.”

6. Owning a Racing Series: Hard Lessons & Thick Skin

[19:18–22:11]

• Advice to Dale Jr. and Other New Series Owners:
  • Warns that, no matter how flawlessly a night runs, someone will complain—and you’ll always be the target.
  • Cites Mike Helton’s advice: “Don’t make it personal.”
    • “If you listen to what they have to say and let them get it out, you’re halfway to the solution.” (Tony Stewart, 21:05)

7. SRX Series: The Modern IROC and Navigating Motorsports Politics

[25:47–32:36]

• SRX Identity:
  • Born as a modern twist on IROC, focusing on fan engagement, relatable formats, and allowing driver/car adjustments.
  • Highlights tracks like Slinger: “Probably the most fun race we’ve ran in SRX this year.” (Tony Stewart, 27:37)
• Relationship with NASCAR (and other series):
  • Admits initial pushback from Steve Phelps and others, but demonstrates SRX supports, not competes with, NASCAR and IndyCar.
    • “It’s not meant to take away from anything. It’s meant to add for everybody.” (Tony Stewart, 29:23)
  • Running SRX on Thursday nights to be supplementary and not encroach on major weekends.
• Driver and Track Selection:
  • Tony puts together a “wish list” of drivers each season and works logistics around six consecutive race weeks—laments that some great tracks (e.g., Vegas Bullring, Irwindale) are hard to include due to logistics.

8. The Entertainer and the Villain: Paul Tracy & SRX Dynamics

[32:36–34:30]

• Stewart on Paul Tracy:
  • Embraces Tracy’s “chaos” as vital to entertainment: “You’ve never bought a comic book or read a comic book that had a hero that didn’t have a villain… You have to have the villain for the hero to be the hero.” (Tony Stewart, 33:12)

9. Surprises in SRX: Marco Andretti, Ernie Francis, and More

[34:30–38:28]

• Marco Andretti:
  • Surprises Stewart with success on ovals and short tracks—credits iRacing for his preparation and determination.
  • “He prepares for every event before we get there. It’s crazy how much effort he’s put into it and work.” (Tony Stewart, 34:40)
• Ernie Francis:
  • Ray Evernham’s pick. Impressed the SRX paddock, even drawing “tough love” from Stewart for driving etiquette.
  • Stewart: “I was mad at Ernie because I love Ernie so much… I said, don’t be like them. You’re better than that.” (Tony Stewart, 36:07)

10. Marriage & Personal Life Transformation

[40:39–47:29]

• Meeting Leah Pruett (NHRA Star):
  • Stewart shares the story of “Snake” Prudhomme pushing them to meet before either was available; their first date was the day before COVID lockdown.
  • Romantic and humorous—Tony drives overnight to Gainesville to meet, then they take a 2-hour Uber to Daytona Bike Week on their first day.
    • “At 6:30 on the nose, she… beats on the door. We go to lunch at the campus there in Gainesville, and they’re like, now what are we going to do? So she’s like, you ever been to bike week?” (Tony Stewart, 42:13)
  • COVID turns a few days together into four and a half months in Havasu—“live with somebody you don’t know for four and a half weeks or four and a half months… It worked. 24/7 with each other and it didn’t take long.” (Tony Stewart, 45:53)
• Navigating Professional Conflicts:
  • Leah is sponsored by Pennzoil/Dodge, Tony by Mobil1/Ford—they solve it through careful branding arrangements.

11. The Drag Racing Adventure

[47:38–65:58]

• Tony Becomes a Drag Racer:
  • Immerses himself in NHRA because of Leah—finds the open paddock and direct fan access refreshing.
    • “When fans come to a drag race, when they buy a ticket, it gets them everywhere... and it is a cool atmosphere and way more laid back than what we've been used to.” (Tony Stewart, 49:55)
  • Attends Frank Hawley's drag racing school, learning the complexity and cadence of burnouts, staging, and technical discipline.
• On Testing Limits:
  • Initially doubts he'd be ready, but Leah and his new team push him forward.
  • “I left the test session… that’s crazy because when we started driving different cars, you just work up to it… in drag racing it’s all off the timers… I said, I'm done testing with you guys.” (Tony Stewart, 59:29)
• Close Call in Vegas:
  • Debuts at Vegas, makes the finals, loses by one inch to 19-year-old Madison. Stewart admires her composure:
  • “There’s 15,840 inches in a quarter mile and I lost by 1 inch, 2/10,000 of a second. And as much as I wanted to be disappointed… I thought, this is really cool... To see her win her first national… no shame in saying I got beat by a 19-year-old girl in that scenario.” (Tony Stewart, 63:49)
• On Saying No:
  • Admits he rarely says no to new adventures but draws the line at driving a Funny Car—though team pressure is mounting.
    • “Hagen absolutely wears me out about driving that funny car… If that thing blows up in the dragster, it’s behind me. You blow up [in a funny car], you drive right into the fire.” (Tony Stewart, 68:21)
• Broadcasting:
  • Loves the booth experience, citing the fan response as motivation and enjoying working with Clint Bowyer and Mike Joy.
    • “I love it… I wasn't sure whether I was going to like it or not, and I think it was more the fans response… but I thoroughly enjoy it though.” (Tony Stewart, 71:04)

12. Stewart-Haas Racing & Delegation

[72:51–76:30]

• Stewart on Ownership:
  • Not as hands-on with daily technical setup—focuses on hiring good people and jumping in on big decisions.
    • “My job is putting the right people together … you have to guide the ship, but you have to have people that can also pull the rope and do the work and know your vision and how you want it.” (Tony Stewart, 74:36)
  • Insists he's still passionate about NASCAR, despite his multitude of new ventures.
• On Kevin Harvick:
  • Praises Harvick’s leadership, team-building skills, and the pairing with Rodney Childers:
    • “Kevin hand-picked those guys… built that four car team, and that's why they have the success… He was one of the most well-rounded drivers that NASCAR has right now.” (Tony Stewart, 77:45)

Notable Quotes

• On Change:
  • “I never thought I'd own a racetrack. I never dreamed of owning a race team, never dreamed of owning a series. None of this stuff was ever planned… So I'm not going to sit here and say, no, I won't try to drive a Top Fuel car…”
    (Tony Stewart, 68:21)
• On Drag Racing’s Difficulty:
  • “People think these things just go in a straight line down through there. They don’t.”
    (Tony Stewart, 53:32)
• On Team Leadership:
  • “I can't fix a problem if I don’t know there’s a problem.”
    (Tony Stewart, 74:36)
• Classic Dale Jr. on Stewart’s Life:
  • “Your life has changed tremendously… find this balance… you do a damn good job. I admire how you’re able to juggle all the things you do…”
    (Dale Earnhardt Jr., 79:10)
• Stewart on Learning & Humility:
  • “At your age and everything you’ve ever done… you’re transparent enough to admit, hey man, I wasn’t sure whether I needed to do this or not...”
    (Dale Jr., 63:22 with Stewart responding)

Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• Stewart explains his 14-lb weight loss: [01:21–02:59]
• Tony’s wildlife encounter at his Indiana home: [10:12–10:58]
• His comedy about being a “creepy 50-year-old” at spring break in Havasu: [08:24]
• Styrofoam revenge at Shangri-La: [17:34–18:10]
• Tony describes marriage origins with Leah: [40:39–47:29]
• Losing the drag race by one inch: [63:49]
• Refusing to drive a Funny Car & teammate peer pressure: [68:21–69:38]

Conclusion

Tony Stewart’s story in this episode is one of continuous growth and reinvention. He remains remarkably humble, honest, and driven—never shying from new challenges, whether that’s personal health, business, or entirely new racing disciplines. Through humor, war stories, and candor, Stewart and Dale Jr. offer listeners insights into the persistence, vulnerability, and excitement of living as a true racer—at any age.