Tony Stewart Bringing Back The ‘Stewie Awards’

NEW YORK – SIRIUS XM Radio announced today that two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Tony Stewart will host the third annual ‘Stewie Awards,’ the  acclaimed awards show that honors the most memorable moments of the NASCAR season.

The ‘Stewies,’ which first debuted in 2007 and features Stewart’s entertaining and irreverent take on the best, boldest and funniest moments from the recently concluded season, will be awarded during a live broadcast hosted by Stewart and Matt Yocum from the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Thursday, December 3. The live broadcast will air on SIRIUS NASCAR Radio, available to listeners nationwide on SIRIUS channel 128 and XM channel 128 with the “Best of SIRIUS” programming package.

The two-hour event will feature live interviews with the 2009 champion and other drivers in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup in Las Vegas, plus other special guests.

“We had so much fun doing this show the last two years that we decided the season just wouldn’t be complete without handing out a few more Stewies,” said Stewart. “Matt and I are thrilled to team up with SIRIUS XM for another event and to be able to do it in one of the most exciting cities in the world will be awesome. They say, ‘What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.’ Not in this case. SIRIUS and XM listeners around the country can tune in live to check it all out.”

Stewart and Yocum will announce the nominees in the award categories in the coming weeks. Following the announcement of the nominees, fans around the country can determine the winners by casting their votes online at www.sirius.com/stewieawards.

The 2009 ‘Stewies’ categories will include:

• Feels Like The First Time” Award – Recognizing the most notable “first” of the NASCAR season
• Best Original Drama – Honoring the year’s most exciting race moment
• Best Original Comedy – Honoring the year’s most entertaining “incident”
• Best Vocal Performance – Honoring the year’s most memorable quote
• Smokey Yunick Award (Best Engineering and Special Effects) – Acknowledging the year’s most creative – and illegal – modifications to a race car
• Bonehead Move of the Year Award
• ‘I Got Dumped’ Award – Acknowledging the year’s most memorable on-track bumping
• Hal Needham Award (Best Stunt Sequence) – Acknowledging the year’s most spectacular crash
• Best Driver2Crew Chatter Exchange – Acknowledging the year’s most memorable driver-to-pit crew communication
• Golden Stewie Award – Chosen by Stewart and Yocum and honoring a legendary driver from the Golden Era of racing
• “Stewie” Lifetime Achievement Award

Stewart and Yocum hosted their critically-acclaimed show, Tony Stewart Live, on SIRIUS XM Radio from 2007 through 2008. Prior to the 2009 NASCAR season, Stewart announced he would be partnering with Haas Automation to form a new Sprint Cup team, Stewart-Haas Racing, where he would be an owner and driver.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s inaugural season on the track has been a tremendous success, with Stewart earning four wins and 15 top-five finishes. He and  teammate Ryan Newman both qualified for the Chase for the Sprint Cup, where Stewart is currently fourth in the standings.