Calls Mount for Tony Stewart to Bring Back $3.5M-Grossing Charitable American Crown After NASCAR Exit

Tony Stewart has a big responsibility on his shoulder, it seems. No, we’re talking about his new daddy duties to little Dominic, or his NHRA exploits, but rather turning the clocks of time to revive an iconic era in dirt racing. A passionate racer at heart, Stewart has always been one step ahead of the lot. From racing in the Indy series to dabbling across midget, sprint, and USAC Silver Crown cars, there’s very less he’s left to achieve. And among those notable steps, also lies one unique event that not only benefitted drivers but also million others through its philanthropic nature.

We’re talking about the iconic Prelude to the Dream annual race that was once a crown jewel of dirt racing. Started in 2005 at the Stewart purchased the Eldora Speedway the year prior, it was a pay-per-view event on HBO held annually on the Wednesday before the Dirt-late model dream, and frequently attracted drivers from various disciplines, including NASCAR, IndyCar, World of Outlaws, and the NHRA. The best part?

The proceeds from the broadcast were entirely donated to charities. In fact, between 2005 and 2012 (the race’s last edition), a total of $3.5 million was donated to Feed the Children, military organizations such as Fisher House Foundation, Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, Operation Homefront, Wounded Warrior Project, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Levine Children’s Hospital, Riley Hospital for Children, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Children’s Medical Center Dallas and the St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Feed the Children also sent food trucks to the hometowns of the top ten finishers in the race.

Notably, Stewart won the event three times (2006, ’08, 09), followed by Kenny Wallace (inaugural race in 2005), Carl Edwards (2007), Jimmie Johnson (2010), Clint Bowyer (2011) and Kyle Busch (2012). Other NASCAR drivers like Denny Hamlin, Jeff Gordon, Bill Elliott, Joey Logano, 2023 Cup Series winner Ryan Blaney’s father Dave Blaney, among many others participated in the event. Even NASCAR Hall of Fame nominee Red Farmer—in his 70s at the time—raced in several editions of the Prelude. But that’s not all!

Dale Earnhardt Jr was also part of the Prelude, but not as a race. He was a grand marshal. Quite a star-studded affair for sure!

So, it was a proud moment not just for Stewart, but also Eldora Speedway’s former owner Earl Baltes. “Tony has a passion to make Eldora strong for many years to come. With events like the Prelude and, of course, our traditional crown jewel races, the tradition of the track is sure to live on,” Baltes said.  “I’m just glad that I’m still around to be able to witness some of the exciting things he’s been doing,” he had said back in 2009. But like all good things must come to an end, so did the event…

In 2013, a heartbreaking press released dropped, marking the closure of a race that was way ahead of its time: “The logistics associated with the Dream’s expansion for the dirt Late Model race teams that supplied the cars, along with speedway officials who must transition the facility, prevents the Prelude To The Dream from being included on the 2013 calendar.” 

But even 11 years later, fans are not over Prelude to the Dream. It began as one Reddit user decided to walk down memory lane, and reminisced on December 5: “Over the 8 years it was held, the race had 6 different winners: Tony Stewart 3x (06, 08, 09) Kenny Wallace (05) Carl Edwards (07) Jimmie Johnson (10) Clint Bowyer (11) Kyle Busch (12). Chevrolet won 6/8, with Ford and Toyota each winning one. Jeff Gordon interestingly raced a Pepsi Cadillac in one of the races,” parts of the caption read.

“It was incredibly cool to see cup schemes on late models, I wish this race kept going,” the Redditor further mentioned. And before you know it, the whole community had gathered to wish for the same…

Can Tony Stewart revive Prelude to the Dream?

“Talk about nostalgia. I wish someone would bring this back. It was awesome to watch and raised a lot of money for charities,” one user wrote.

Well, Stewart certainly had a lot on his shoulders with the ownership of Stewart Haas Racing. But, with just NHRA racing now on his schedule, he can focus on bringing the racetrack back to life with this event. Not to forget, there was a time when the track hosted the Eldora Million, and it was the richest sprint car race of the year. After 2003, the iconic event was held for two years in 2022 and 2023 but has taken a sabbatical again.

Perhaps Stewart could do with the help of a fellow NASCAR driver, maybe a partner who could help set up the event. This is where fans feel that Dale Earnhardt Jr., with his expertise and resources, can bring the short oval back to its former glory. “This has always been my favorite extracurricular type of event ever done. If we can’t get this back maybe Jr. can get a big crew to start running a cars tour match race of some sort at Martinsville or Bristol.” In January 2023 Dale Jr. and Kevin Harvick purchased the CARS Tour which is a stock car short track racing series. This fan is hoping someone like Dale Jr. can give Stewart that extra financial push to bring this event back as well.

Interestingly, Eldora Speedway was the only track that hosted a national series race on dirt. The Craftsman Truck Series visited the short oval from 2013 to 2019, and the event was named the Eldora Dirt Derby. But, ever since then, the venue hasn’t hosted a mega event that would catch the attention of the race fans. Remembering the good old days before the Truck Series race at this racetrack, a fan added, “I believe they ended it after Eldora got the truck race. I miss it as well.” 

However, a race fan argued that the Prelude lost its charm when the format was changed, and instead of single entries, the field was divided into four teams. Each race team represented the children’s hospital that would benefit from the race event. For those of you who do not know, this format system might have pushed fans away from it. “Wish the nascar guys still did this. For a couple years they had it just right and then they even screwed up that format with the team stuff they did.” NASCAR fans complaining about another format change. Anything new?

Now it is hard to host this event on a pay-per-view basis, but hopefully, the Eldora Speedway will return with the iconic race events that it was once known for.