Waiting is the hardest part as Tony Stewart plots his comeback
The waiting is the hardest part, and right now, it's all that three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart can do.
Stewart, who suffered a burst fracture of his L1 vertebra in a sand rail crash while on vacation Jan. 31, hasn't raced yet this year and doesn't yet know when he'll return.
As the co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, Stewart is in Texas with the team this week. He was honored Thursday night at a Texas Motorsports Hall of Fame ceremony.
In Texas, Stewart has raised more than $1.5 million for Speedway Children's Charities through a number of contributions, most notably his annual "Smoke Show" fantasy camp.
Stewart is scheduled to have scans of his injured back later this month, which could provide a clue at to when he might be able to get back behind the wheel of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet.
"Then (doctors) will be able to have an idea of when exactly it's going to happen," Stewart told the Associated Press Thursday night. "The hard part is just waiting until we get scanned."
The good news, such as it is, is that Stewart's rehab appears to be coming along
"If you step off the curb wrong or if you step too hard, you're definitely reminded that you have these rods in your back," Stewart told the AP. "Other than that, I feel really well. ... I'm anxious to get the scans. It's driving me crazy wanting to see what it looks like and then to listen to the diagnosis of when they think they're going to let me go."
Stewart said his return is up to the doctors.
"No point in putting yourself in agony when you know it's still in their hands," Stewart said. "Literally trying to do everything within reason that they tell you do, and wait until they say it's OK. When they say it's time to go, we'll go.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
