Tony Stewart Balances Diapers and Drag Racing in 2025

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (2025-03-11) – Tony stewart, the NASCAR Hall of Famer, is embracing his new role as a father while continuing his racing career. He and his wife, drag racer Leah Pruett, are navigating the challenges and joys of parenthood alongside the high-octane world of motorsports.

The Undefeated Diaper Dodger?

Despite being a new dad, Tony Stewart humorously claims to be “still undefeated” when it comes to changing diapers, a statement met with playful skepticism from his wife, Leah Pruett.

Stewart recounts Pruett’s reaction to his undefeated claim: “She keeps telling me every time I say this answer that it is not a flex, that it is embarrassing.”

Baby dom’s Pit pass

Their son, Dominic James Stewart, born in November, has quickly become a fixture in their lives, accompanying them to events like the Hot Air Balloon Festival in Lake Havasu, Arizona, preseason testing in Florida, and the NHRA’s season opener, the Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway.

balancing Act: Racing and Raising Dominic

Pruett, 36, described the balancing act as she arrived slightly late to a media event, having rushed up three flights of stairs. She shared her enthusiasm for motherhood and her career:

I’m absolutely loving it, and I’m finding this balance between constantly comparing my love for racing and love for Dominic, and there’s two different types of love, right? But I feel like I have won the absolute lottery, the beautiful baby, an incredible team on both sides, incredible partners. I couldn’t be happier.

The challenge lies in juggling feedings, naps, and playtime with business meetings, autograph sessions, and the demands of working on race cars, all while protecting Dominic from the noise and fumes of the drag strip.

Leah’s Crucial Role

Stewart acknowledges Pruett’s multifaceted responsibilities:

Leah has huge responsibilities,not only as a mom and a babysitter for me,but now on top of that,she plays a very crucial role with the race team. She doesn’t just sit around. She’s not sitting on her hands all day away from the kid. She’s working in this pit, so she has a full schedule.

Pruett stepped back from driving for Tony Stewart Racing at the end of the 2023 season to focus on starting a family. Stewart, 53, took over her Top Fuel dragster, finishing ninth in points in 2024 after Pruett’s career-best third-place finish the previous year.

stewart’s Racing Future

Stewart has promised to return the seat to Pruett “the moment she’s ready.” Reflecting on his progress, Stewart stated:

This year I’m way calmer. There’s still a lot of things that haven’t happened driving the car that I know are out there and that are going to come at some point. So it’s not like you say, ‘I got that.’ But I feel way more confident and comfortable where I am now versus where I was a year ago at this time.

He also announced a multiyear extension with Stellantis, the parent company of Dodge.

The Dominic Effect

Stewart believes having Dominic around will positively impact the team:

If you have a bad run and you get a chance to go back to the bus just for five minutes, and he’s awake and you see him smile one time, that bad run doesn’t seem so bad. So I think this kid’s going to play a really crucial role in this team.

Diaper Duty Looms

Despite having full-time help, a last-minute change in childcare might force Stewart to face his diaper-changing fears.

Stewart shared his evolving mindset:

I never thought I would say this: I’m kind of looking forward to this a little bit because I feel like it’s a rite of passage to a certain degree as a father. So it is indeed coming, and I’m planning and, psychologically, in the right frame of mind to do this.

He added:

I’ve watched him pull the diaper down and I’ve seen what’s in there, and I immediately exit stage right. So I’m going to have to commit to this one. But once we do the first one, it’ll be fine, I’m sure.

Stewart plans to document the experience on social media, quipping, “I will make sure the world knows when I change my first one.”