Stewart fires verbal jabs at Edwards

Associated Press

MIAMI BEACH, Fla.

It’s very difficult to win a war of words with Tony Stewart, who uses quick wit and a sharp tongue to defeat anyone bold enough to go toe-to-toe with him.

It’s clearly been his strategy the last month with Carl Edwards, the Sprint Cup Series points leader and lone driver standing in Stewart’s way of a third NASCAR championship. Whether it works or not won’t be determined until Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, where Edwards will take a three-point lead over Stewart into the season finale.

Edwards did his best to hang with Stewart on Thursday in their final joint news conference before the race.

As the two heaped compliment after compliment on each other, they were finally asked if they’d be so polite on the last lap with the championship on the line.

“I’d wreck my mom to win a championship,” Stewart said. “I respect him as a driver, but this isn’t about friendships this weekend. This is a war. This is a battle. This is for a national championship. It’s no holds barred this weekend.

“I didn’t come this far to be one step away from it and let it slip away, so we’re going to go for it.”

Edwards was unfazed and gamely tried to go after Stewart.

“Did you say something?” he asked.

“Yeah, you can come visit my trophy in the room at [Las] Vegas,” Stewart replied.

“He’s got the talking part figured out. Problem is, you haven’t led the points yet this year, have you?” said Edwards, who has led the points for 21 weeks this year.

“They say there’s talkers and doers. I’ve done this twice,” Stewart replied in reference to his two championships.

“That’s the funny thing. I’ve listened to you talk a lot today. You’ve talked a lot about your past successes. That is very respectable,” Edwards said.

And with that, he bowed out of the witty banter and got serious.