CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) \u2014 Tony Stewart will return to NASCAR competition for the first time since 2016 when he drives for Kaulig Racing in the debut of the Ram Truck at next month’s season-opening race at Daytona International Raceway.<\/p>\n
Stewart, a three-time NASCAR champion and Hall of Fame inductee, last raced a truck in 2005 at NASCAR’s national level. He drives for Dodge in the NHRA drag racing series and racing for Kaulig as it brings Ram trucks back into NASCAR was a perfect re-entry for the brand.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI\u2019ve raced just about everything with four wheels at Daytona, but never a truck,” Stewart said Tuesday. \u201cSo when a seat in the new Ram was offered up for their first race back in NASCAR, I didn\u2019t hesitate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stewart will be part of Ram’s \u201cfree agent program\u201d that is designed to bring proven drivers and rising stars into the spotlight. Ram will field five trucks in the 2026 season \u2014 full-time seats for Brenden \u201cButterbean\u201d Queen, Daniel Dye and Justin Haley, as well as the free agent seat and an additional program called \u201cRace For The Seat\u201d in which a competition in the form of a reality show determines the fourth full-time driver.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not just returning to the track, we\u2019re rewriting the playbook. Bringing Tony in as the first Free Agent will generate a crazy amount of excitement, which is exactly why we created the program \u2014 allowing fans to watch an all-time favorite driver get back into the seat, but this time, it\u2019s a Ram truck,\u201d said Tim Kuniskis, head of American brands at Stellantis. \u201cThis is about honoring a legacy. Tony represents grit, determination, and the spirit of racing \u2014 pure adrenaline for the fans.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Stewart is the first and only driver to win all three USAC National championships (Midget, Sprint, Silver Crown) in one year (1995). He also won the IndyCar championship in 1997 and NASCAR championships in 2005, 2008 and 2011.<\/p>\n
He ran six Truck Series races in his career with two victories, his last in 2003.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving Tony Stewart in one of our Ram trucks is the kind of thing you dream about,\u201d team owner Matt Kaulig said. \u201cHe\u2019s a legend \u2014 his name alone brings energy to the sport. We couldn\u2019t be more fired up to have him in our camp as we roll into Daytona for our first race. This is going to be a ride worth watching.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Kaulig Racing fields two Cup cars and is the anchor factory team for Ram\u2019s return to NASCAR in 2026. Established in 2016, Kaulig Racing competed in more than 700 NASCAR Xfinity Series races, earned two regular-season championships and 27 victories.<\/p>\n
The team began competing part-time in the Cup Series in 2021 before expanding to a two-car, full-time team in 2022 and adding a third, part-time entry during the 2023 season. Since its first Cup Series start in 2021, the team has earned two wins.<\/p>\n
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