Stewart

HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- The familiar scowl was gone, replaced by a small smile, a few tears and a look of relief.

By winning his first Winston Cup championship, the constant air of misery that Tony Stewart carries with him was lifted.

Stewart was finally happy.

He secured the title Sunday by crossing the line at Homestead-Miami Speedway in 18th place, a finish that would normally warrant one of his trademark temper tantrums. An ill-handling race car has always been his enemy, the inability to run up front the cruelest type of punishment.

For Stewart, a 31-year-old throwback to the old-school racers, the only important thing is winning.

But in this case, it was the bigger prize that mattered.

To get here, he had to overcome another year of controversy, fines and probation, as well as a last-place finish in the Daytona 500 - a race he was favored to win, but his engine blew on the second lap -- and five other DNFs.

So he savored every minute of this personal triumph, his vision blurred by tears as he drove down pit road and was met by dozens of congratulating crew members and other drivers.

"To have my peers come out and congratulate me, the feeling of satisfaction is more than money can buy," he said. "To start off this season the way that we did, 43rd in points after Daytona -- to be able to rebound from all that, go through all the things we did and still keep our focus ... it was a personal victory."

Stewart, NASCAR's reigning bad boy, won the title at the end of the most tumultuous season of his four-year Winston Cup career. This year, he punched a photographer, sought help to control his temper and became the only driver to win a championship while on probation.

Unable to avoid controversy even on the eve of the title, he was accused Saturday of bumping a photographer after practice. After a long meeting with the photographer and NASCAR officials, he apologized.

"I just make a habit of getting in trouble, or trouble finding me," he said. "Even when I don't self-inflict my own wounds, I'm my own worst enemy."

But he bounced back from his latest scrape to win the title, holding off runner-up Mark Martin in a race that was won by Kurt Busch.

Stewart was humble at first, his voice choked with emotion, his brooding eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses when he spoke at the championship presentation.

Later, still wearing his champagne-soaked firesuit, he was charming and funny as he talked about how far he's come -- from his days as a 20-year-old working in an Indiana machine shop for $5 an hour, to the low points of this season that nearly derailed his career.

"I practically destroyed this team by midseason, single-handedly," he said. "Guys wanted to leave the team, and some did, and I don't blame them. I wouldn't have worked for me with the attitude I had."

In the weeks leading up to Sunday, his critics questioned whether he was worthy of being Winston Cup champion.

It's no secret Stewart can't be bothered with NASCAR's little requirements. He doesn't want to sign autographs in the garage area, doesn't want to meet with the media, doesn't want to represent anything.

His hero is A.J. Foyt, one of the greatest drivers in history with a temper as volatile as Stewart's. And Foyt sees nothing wrong with who Stewart is.

"I respect him for that," said Foyt. "Why do you have to get into that? If you're a champion, you're a champion. If you're a good race driver, you're a good race driver."

Chip Ganassi, a car owner who shares Stewart's demand for excellence, jumped at the chance two years ago to put Stewart in one of his cars for a shot at winning the Indianapolis 500. He would have fielded a car for him again this season, but Stewart declined, focused instead on his own championship hopes.

"He's a racer, that's all, and there's good and bad and that," Ganassi said. "I choose only to see the good, and that is that he'll do anything to race and anything to win."

With his championship, he cemented his status as one of the greatest drivers ever. It was his ninth title in 23 years, and he's won them at every level, in go-karts, sprint cars, modifieds, even the Indy Racing League.

Give him the keys to anything, he'll drive the wheels off of it.

"He just loves to win," Foyt said. "He don't race for the money. He races for the glory."

And on this day, he raced to beat his hero. Foyt has four Indy 500 titles -- the one thing Stewart truly covets. When Foyt was helping Stewart get started in Indy cars, he always reminded him of that.

Now Stewart has something Foyt doesn't.

"I finally did something Foyt didn't do, his favorite saying to me was always, ‘Just check the record books, big boy,' " Stewart said. "That's right, A.J., check the record books."

Knowing he just needed to run a smart race and stay out of trouble Sunday to win the title, Stewart's mood and demeanor were much different than usual.

Typically tense and focused in the hours before any race, Stewart was loose and his spirits seemed high as he mingled with his peers at driver introductions. More than one stopped to whisper in his ear, or pat him on the back.

"I was real calm about everything, I didn't feel nervous at all," he said. "I had more guys today saying ‘Good Luck, we hope you get this done.' I think that calmed me down."

Then he headed off to his car, the one place in life Stewart feels comfortable, at peace -- and maybe even happy.