2011 NACAR Sprint Car Champion Tony Stewart leads the Las Vegas Strip Victory Lap
Cold, windy weather and under a canopy of threatening clouds did not deter the thousands of NASCAR fans from lining both sides of the Las Vegas Strip for a close-up look at their racing heros and noble steads. A NASCAR sprint car is as much of a star attraction as the drivers and crews. These colorful power monsters can smoke the huge racing slicks at will while producing enough noise (high-tech music to race fan ears) to get a fleet of 747's airborne.
Tony Stewart won the 2011 NASCAR chase series for his third championship and had the honors of leading Thursday's Vegas Strip Victory Lap parade down the famous boulevard. The popular Stewart brought along the other eleven drivers that qualified for this year's chase including the sport's most popular NASCAR driver for nine years in a row, Dale Earnhardt Jr. They were joined by second place finisher Carl Edwards, Kevin Harwick, Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, Jeff Gorden, Danny Hamlin, Ryan Newman, Kurt Busch and the motorsport's most talented driver, bad boy Kyle Busch.
Thursday's most dramatic moments occurred during the burnouts in front of the Las Vegas Wynn when Ryan Newman's number 39 racer blew an engine and enveloped the front of the racer in a large fireball. Newman kept the SRO crowds entertained when he jumped out of the smoking car, climbed onto the roof and acknowledged the cheering fans with raised arms and deep bows.
Congratulations to racing gentleman Tony Stewart for his 2011 Championship and providing fans with the most exciting racing seen in years.
