Having watched friend and rival Jeff Gordon make a heralded return as a Sprint Cup fill-in, Tony Stewart should be champing at the bit to do the same for the team he owns. Right?
"No. No. Not doing it," Stewart told media members on Wednesday . . . and then hedged.
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"If it was a one-week deal that we needed something, then obviously I'm 100 percent dedicated to Stewart-Haas Racing and if that's what it took, I would be there in a heartbeat," he said.
"But would I come back and run five or six races? No."
Stewart has been adamant all year that this is his final Cup season. Over. Done. Finished. Forget about it.
His Wednesday media event was about the throwback scheme he will display at Darlington, but he also answered questions about other topics. One was his championship chances in his final season.
He is, he said, "a little bit short of where we need to be." And that would be at the level of Kevin Harvick, the best Stewart-Haas Racing driver, the 2014 Cup champ, the runner-up last year and the points leader heading into Watkins Glen this weekend.
The other was possibly jumping into a car in case of emergency. When a media member asked about a Gordonian replacement stint, Stewart shut him down. "Let me help you not waste breath here," he said.
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In many languages, the answer would be the same.
No.
Stewart said he has spent too much time on critical stuff he finds wasteful. Time-consuming technical data, for instance. Smoke just wants to race … and he can't do that, run the team and be competitive.
Wednesday's media event was about Stewart's entry in the Southern 500, which once again brings throwback color schemes to the venerable "Lady in Black."
Stewart will honor Bobby Allison with his car reflecting those Allison drove to victory in 1971 and '72. Those were some races. Allison led all but 38 laps in the 1971 race and a race-high 229 en route to the 1972 win.
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Stewart's car even will have gold-colored wheels as Allison's did.
"I would say there's two Bobbys that I've known," Stewart said. "One with a helmet on and one without a helmet on. The one with the helmet on grew teeth. He was fierce in the race car. … I've got a chance to know him since he's taken the helmet off and he's probably one of the nicest guys I've ever met.
"I'm glad I know him as a friend now and didn't have to race against him."
Stewart has never won at Darlington. "This is one race that it is a crown jewel that I haven't got yet," Stewart said. "This is my chance to cross one off my list."
The Southern 500 is scheduled for Sept. 4.