TONY STEWART
Age: 28
Series: Winston Cup
Race Team:
Home Depot Pontiac

"If you look at racing in the '50s or '60s, racing was really big. I think baseball and football have kind of overshadowed auto racing a little bit. Now, auto racing is starting to make a comeback, which is definitely good for guys like myself. It's nice to see the sport gaining momentum again, and with so many major racing series now, the sport of auto racing is the strongest it's ever been."

JUAN MONTOYA
Age: 24
Series: CART
Race Team:
Target Chip Ganassi

"The growth of racing doesn't surprise me. CART is a bit unfamiliar to fans, but I think once they see it and get familiar they will love open-wheel racing. Racing is big, but with so many different types of racing it should be (even) bigger.

EDDIE CHEEVER
Age: 42
Series: IRL
Race Team:
Team Cheever

"Motorsports has always been a spectator sport. It has all the elements that fascinate human beings?. Danger, determination, luck and intrigue. I've been racing for 25 years, and every year, it has grown by leaps and bounds. I think the growth is due to many reasons. The facilities have grown and are more fan friendly; the competition is more severe; and the TV coverage has improved dramatically. Then, you need to couple those things with the fact that the sport is successfully answering the marketing needs of huge corporations and you have all the bases covered."

BRYAN HERTA
Age: 29
Series: CART
Race Team:
Forsythe Championship Racing
"I am constantly amazed by how much auto racing has grown since I started following it. I didn't choose racing as a career because it is popular, but because I love the sport. More and more people are following racing and I think it has to do with the competitive aspect -- man and machine. It draws people. It's like the gladiators, one man against another. I think people can relate to what we do. They can put themselves in the position to imagine they are driving."

KENNY BERNSTEIN
Age: 55
Series: NHRA
Race Team:
Budweiser

"We can attribute the growth of motorsports largely to media attention and television coverage, which has in turn attracted 'Corporate America.' If I think of where we were 20 years ago, I'm surprised motorsports has grown so much. On the other hand, when you've lived with it the past 20 years and have watched the attention the sport has received the last 7 or 8 years, then the growth seems in line with what we'd expect."

MIKE SKINNER
Age: 42
Series: Winston Cup
Race Team:
Lowe's/RCR

"I think pleased is a better word than surprised. Very, very pleased. It's kinda like the NFL was in the '80s. It seems like NASCAR has been shadowing the stick-and-ball sports, but now we're paralleling them. It's great that the sport has come where it's come and it's awesome to be a part of it."

JIMMY VASSER
Age: 34
Series: CART
Race Team:
Target Chip Ganassi

"No doubt it has to do with fans coming to the track. Once you've been to the track, seen the cars, smelled the fuel, felt the excitement on the track you can't help but get interested. Unfortunately, television can't reproduce those experiences. Race fans are made at the track, not on television."

MARK MARTIN
Age: 41
Series: Winston Cup
Race Team:
Valvoline/Roush Racing

"Yes and no. On one hand, I am not surprised at the growth of auto racing, because NASCAR racing is a great product and the racing is really exciting. On the other hand, I never dreamed it would be what it is today."

AL UNSER JR.
Age: 36
Series: IRL
Race Team:
Galles ECR Racing

"Yes, I am surprised at the growth of open-wheel racing, especially in regards to NASCAR. I do think however, that single-seat, open-wheel racing has not grown enough because of the split between CART and IRL."

PAUL TRACY
Age: 31
Series: CART
Race Team:
Team Kool Green

"People are understanding the difference between their own cars and race cars. Thanks to the cross-over, more fans enjoy the sport of racing as they relate to it from driving passenger cars."

JERRY NADEAU
Age: 29
Series: Winston Cup
Race Team:
Michael Holigan/Hendrick Motorsports
"It doesn't surprise me. Growing up, racing was all I'd ever done. I watched a lot of it on TV, but I think a lot of things are different these days. They are getting even better with photography and the way they cover racing on television -- it's a lot more exciting for the fans with in-car cameras and interviews and the ability to talk to drivers while they are actually in a race. The sport is just growing and growing, and more and more people are getting involved in it. I think it's going to be one of the best sports in the world for a long time to come."

ADRIAN FERNANDEZ
Age: 34
Series: CART
Race Team:
Patrick Racing

"Auto racing has grown in the last few years, am I surprised? Yes, in a way and I think that it has been growing because the series has done a good job of promoting the events and getting to the people, and getting the series to where it is more competitive. But I think racing in general is just growing because of the nature of it."

RICHIE HEARN
Age: 29
Series: CART
Race Team:
Della Penna Motorsports

"I think that motor racing is finally getting the recognition it deserves and public interest proves that. The amount of sponsorship, television audience numbers, and the overall acceptance by the regular public (not just hard-core fans) is increasing all the time. Am I surprised? No, because racing has been around a long time."

ROBBIE MCGEHEE
Age: 26
Series: IRL
Race Team:
Treadway Racing

"The growth does not surprise me a bit. With NASCAR leading the way, I think auto racing will soon be a sport that will cover a Sunday afternoon in most households. I believe that the pendulum will swing back towards open-wheel racing, with the great television package we have."

WARREN JOHNSON
Age: 56
Series: NHRA
Race Team:
GM Goodwrench

"I think that auto racing has been the beneficiary of the fans' disenchantment with some figures in other major league sports. Racing has generally been able to avoid making headlines with articles about players' outrageous salary demands, strikes and lockouts, criminal activities, and all of the other problems that now appear regularly in the sports pages. Racers still seem to have a high regard for their fans and for their public images, so we don't see as many instances of "bad boys" in motorsports."

ROB SLAVINSKI
Age: 39
Series: NHRA
Race Team:
Kessinger Motorsports/Castrol

"I feel auto racing has grown in leaps and bounds over the past five years. None of it has surprised me. The influx of live telecasts has attracted the attention of major corporate sponsors. These sponsors can now sell more products due to national TV coverage."