Defending Champion Stewart Seeks Chili Bowl Repeat:

Tony Stewart knows a thing or two about world-class venues and motorsports events surrounded by high publicity and international intrigue. And yet it is a Midget-car contest held each January inside a converted rodeo arena and livestock hall in Oklahoma that Stewart calls “the best race of the year for me.” Stewart declares, “Yeah, if I could run only one race a year, and I had to pick, it would definitely be the Chili Bowl.” He is referring to the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, the 22nd annual edition of which will be held Jan. 8-12 inside the Tulsa Expo Center. Saturday night’s headline action will be televised live, for the first time, on HBO Pay-Per-View. The Chili Bowl, in Stewart’s opinion, is “the toughest race to win,” and he should know. Twice, in 2002 and ’07, he has emerged as the victor in the Saturday-night A-Main finale, one of the most coveted short-track events in America. This year, some 280 plus Midgets are expected to haul to Tulsa for the mid-winter classic. Watch the live television broadcast of the 2008 Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals on Saturday, Jan. 12, at 8:00pm/et. The HBO Pay-Per-View telecast has a suggested retail price of $24.95 and will be available to more than 61 million pay-per-view homes in the United States and Canada and millions more worldwide. Order directly from your digital cable or satellite TV system or contact your provider’s customer service for details. A subscription to HBO is not required. Visit hbo.com.(PR)(1-8-2008)