Tony "Smoke" Stewart was crowned Nascar Sprint Cup Champion last year proving to his many fans and critics alike that he is one of the elite drivers in Nascar once again.

Ironically after winning the championship he fired his crew chief. A lot of people wondered why, but Tony knew the answer. He could always get better and he was going to try to come back even stronger this year.

Tony Stewart is looking at his career a lot differently these days for one reason only. He is not just a driver with a sponsor these days, he is the owner of his team and is running a business.

The bad is that when the team loses he loses, but as the owner he does not have to ask for permission to make improvements to his team or his car. If Tony has the idea and looks at his ban account and has the money, he can pull the trigger. I think more drivers should do what Tony Stewart is doing and buy their own teams to see just how good they really can be in the Nascar Sprint Cup series.

Tony is not going to accept anything less than winning, and I totally expect him to prove that this weekend at the Daytona 500. Don't be shocked if he wins it. He won't be.

More From 107.7 WGNA