“I'll be damned if he was right”: When Tony Stewart reflected on Jeff Gordon’s Hall of Fame prediction in the induction speech

Tony Stewart, the three-time Cup Series champion, was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2020. During his induction speech, he candidly talked about how fun banter with Jeff Gordon over text in 2019 became true for him and how he was right about the induction.

Stewart, widely known as "Smoke," is a three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion, having won in the years 2002, 2005, and 2011. He is also the 1997 IndyCar Series champion and the 1995 USAC Triple Crown champion. He is the only driver in history to win championships in both IndyCar and NASCAR. He has 49 NASCAR Cup Series wins. Along with that, he also co-owned Stewart-Haas Racing until last year.

During his February 2020 induction speech in Charlotte, North Carolina, Stewart talked about the moment from 2019 when Gordon was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He texted Gordon from a sprint car track in Florida, while preparing for a heat race, telling him about having fun racing while Gordon was in his seat, at the induction ceremony. In response to this, Gordon said:

“I’m just warming it up for you for next year.”

Looking back at that, Stewart recalled in his speech, telling him:

“I told him, ‘Don’t put that on me.’

Just a year later, Tony Stewart joined the list of drivers inducted into the Hall of Fame. This is where referring to that conversation he said:

“I’ll be damned if he wasn’t right.”

This interaction was shared by Tony as a part of his speech, shared on the NASCAR YouTube channel.

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Tony Stewart shared his feelings about the Hall of Fame induction and continuing racing

Further on, Tony Stewart also went on to state during the speech that he was conflicted about the timing of his induction.

"So, back in May, when I was voted into this year's Hall of Fame class, I was truly honored. But I was also really conflicted in my head. I'm not old — or at least I don't feel like I'm old. I'm still racing; in fact, I'm racing more now than I have in a lot of the past years. But in my mind, the NASCAR Hall of Fame is there to honor the completion of one’s career."

Over time, however, Stewart came to appreciate it and talked about how special it was to be one of only 55 inductees into NASCAR’s Hall of Fame at that time.

"I've come to appreciate what an honor it truly is. Being one of only 55 people inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame… it’s truly an elite group, and it’s incredibly humbling to be a part of it."

After talking about his racing journey that got him where he is, Tony Stewart also made a special mention of his time at Joe Gibbs Racing and how it helped shape his career for good. He spent 12 years with Joe Gibbs Racing, where he won two NASCAR Cup Series championships.

Tony Stewart and Joe Gibbs - Source: Getty

"Joe surrounded me with some of the best people in racing, and that's why we were able to win two championships and a lot of races. One of those people Joe paired me up with was Bobby Labonte."

Stewart has often talked about how Gibbs’ mentorship was important to his success. In a 2019 interview with NASCAR.com, he gave a statement echoing this sentiment:

"If I didn’t work for him, I wouldn’t be where I’m at now."

After leaving Joe Gibbs Racing in 2008, Stewart co-founded Stewart-Haas Racing. As a driver-owner, he won another NASCAR Cup Series championship in 2011 and made the team into one of NASCAR’s most competitive.