Tony Stewart’s Racing Future Just Took a Dramatic Turn – And It’s All Because of Leah Pruett’s Imminent Comeback

The NHRA world is buzzing louder than a 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster, and the reason has nothing to do with nitro percentages or clutch settings.

It has everything to do with a promise Tony Stewart made the day his wife, Leah Pruett, told him she was stepping away from the cockpit to start a family.

That promise? The moment Leah says “I’m ready,” the seat in the Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel dragster is hers again – no questions, no negotiations, no drama. And according to multiple sources inside Tony Stewart Racing, that moment is coming far sooner than most people expected.

The three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion turned NHRA rookie sensation shocked the motorsport universe in 2024 when, at age 53, he climbed into Pruett’s vacated Top Fuel ride after she announced her pregnancy.

What could have been a sentimental farewell tour turned into one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in recent memory: two final-round appearances, four semifinals, ninth in the points standings, and the 2024 NHRA Top Fuel Rookie of the Year award.

Stewart didn’t just keep the seat warm – he proved he can still wheel a 330-mph monster with the best of them.

But from day one, Stewart has been crystal clear: this is temporary.

“That is 1,000 percent her race car,” Stewart told reporters at the PRI show last December. “The second she wants it back, I’m out. I will not hesitate. I’ll probably be crying, but I’m getting out.”

Now, all signs point to Leah Pruett pulling the helmet back down in 2026 – possibly even earlier.

The 36-year-old California native stepped away at the absolute peak of her powers. In 2023 she delivered the best season of her career – third in the championship, multiple wins, and the respect of every team on the property.

Yet just hours after giving birth to the couple’s first child, Dominic James Stewart, on November 17, 2024 – literally the same weekend as the NHRA Finals – the fire was still burning.

And she never really left the sport.

While changing diapers and navigating new-mom life, Pruett has remained deeply embedded in Tony Stewart Racing operations. She’s been on every conference call, involved in every major setup decision, and has spearheaded several technical projects for the Dodge-backed program.

As she told FloRacing earlier this year, “I’m so involved right now that when I do jump back in, I’ll be even more equipped than when I stepped out.”

That wasn’t a hypothetical. That was a blueprint.

Then came the moment that sent social media into meltdown. Standing in front of a packed media room at the PRI show in Indianapolis, Pruett grinned and declared, “I’m a Dodge mom.” Three simple words that instantly became a movement.

Within days, #DodgeMom merchandise was flying off virtual shelves, and the message was unmistakable: motherhood isn’t the end of her story – it’s the next chapter’s fuel.

Behind the smile, however, lies a far more personal battle that makes her comeback even more compelling.

For years, Pruett has quietly managed Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease that attacks the thyroid and wreaks havoc on hormone levels – estrogen, testosterone, insulin, everything an elite athlete relies on.

She has raced with a continuous glucose monitor strapped to her arm for the past two seasons, constantly calibrating her body the same way crews calibrate clutch discs and fuel curves.

Add postpartum recovery and the physical demands of a newborn, and the pause in her driving career suddenly makes perfect sense.

But in every recent interview, the message is the same: “My health is in check. I needed this reset. And my heart says I’ll be back in a race car.”

Tony Stewart knows it too. He sees it every day – the competitor who refuses to let anything, even her own immune system, write the ending to her story. He’s not just supportive; he’s already preparing for the hand-off.

The multi-year partnership extension with Dodge and Stalantis announced earlier this year wasn’t just about keeping Stewart in the seat – it was about building a program strong enough to welcome back one of the most popular and talented drivers in the sport whenever she’s ready.

So when will that be?

Insiders close to the team suggest Pruett is targeting a limited schedule as early as the second half of the 2026 season, with a full campaign in 2027.

Some even whisper about a dramatic mid-season return if testing goes perfectly – imagine the scene: Tony rolls the car to the water box, climbs out, hands the helmet to Leah, and the crowd loses its collective mind.

It would be the most emotional driver change in motorsport history.

This isn’t a retirement story. It isn’t a “can women have it all” debate. It’s the story of a world-class racer who took control of every variable – family, health, legacy – and refused to let anyone else dictate the timeline.

Tony Stewart, the man who once punched photographers and flipped off NASCAR officials, has spent the last year proving he can still win races… while simultaneously making it abundantly clear he’s perfectly happy to lose the seat to the one person he’d gladly surrender it to.

The NHRA world isn’t just waiting for Leah Pruett’s comeback.

It’s counting down to it.

And when that Dodge Mom fires the engine for the first time as a mother, the stands won’t just be loud – they’ll be historic.