Smoke needs victory at Richmond to overshadow contract talks

Tony Stewart has been under a lot of pressure the last few days.

But Smoke hopes a trip to Richmond International raceway will be just the answer to unwind a little.

Tony Stewart says Richmond is his favorite track. (AP)

Stewart's contract situation and possible departure from Joe Gibbs Racing has thrust the two-time champion into the spotlight in a big way for about a week.

Stewart is no doubt already tired of answering questions and talking about his future plans. So the best possible way to forget about all those off-track stories will be to climb behind the wheel of his car and race at his favorite track -- which just happens to be Richmond International Raceway, site of Saturday night's 10th race of the Sprint Cup season.

"It is my favorite track," Stewart said. "It's not one of them, it's the favorite track of mine on the circuit. I've won two Truck races and three Cup races there. It's where I got my first win. It's definitely a place I enjoy coming to, and considering how it factors into the Chase, it's definitely an important stop for us."

Saturday night's race might not be as important as the annual September Richmond stop, which sets up the 10-race Chase championship stretch, in terms of points.

But after last week's disappointing ending in Talladega, where he led a race-high 61 laps only to be knocked out in a late crash, Stewart sees this race as significant.

"We don't settle for anything less than winning races," said Stewart who finished 38th in Talladega. "When we know that we let one slip away; that's something that we do let ourselves get down about, but that's also what got us 32 wins and two championships. We have such a high standard of what we feel our performance should be on the race track. I think that shows the caliber team that we have."

It's easy to see why Richmond is Stewart's favorite track when you look at his record at the .75-mile speedway.

He has won three Cup races, including his first career series win in his 1999 rookie year, and two Craftsman Truck Series events at RIR. Stewart has led 792 laps at Richmond, nearly 11 percent of his 7,192 lap total.

"We're looking forward to getting back to Richmond," Stewart smiled.

So is his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin, the Virginia native who has another home game Saturday night.

Hamlin grew up racing at the weekly short tracks that populate the Richmond area and has always considered the RIR state fairgrounds speedway his base, just as stable mate Stewart calls the Indianapolis Motor Speedway home.