As Tony Stewart recovers from a broken shoulder blade, don’t look for him to slow down much. Car owner Joe Gibbs says he won’t keep Stewart from running in races other than Nextel Cup events. Gibbs is not fond of his Cup drivers competing in other series. Gibbs says he has talked to Stewart about the driver’s racing schedule. “I think for younger guys that have a chance maybe to up their careers and want laps and all that, that’s one set of circumstances,” Gibbs said Monday. Gibbs’ other two Cup drivers, rookies Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley, both drive full time in the Busch Series. Stewart has competed in five Busch races for Kevin Harvick’s team. He’s scheduled to drive five more Busch races for Harvick, beginning at Daytona next month. Gibbs says that once his drivers begin competing for a Cup title, he wants them spending less time in other series. So what happens if Hamlin, ninth in points after winning at Pocono last weekend, makes the championship chase this season? Would Gibbs pull him out of the Busch Series? “I think at some point, though, if he winds up in that top 10 this year, and it looks like that’s the type of racer he’s going to be, you have to have serious talks about it,” Gibbs said.(Greensboro News-Record)(6-13-2006)
