Tony Stewart News: Racer to Return to Sprint Cup

After missing three races due to the recent race track tragedy where he hit and killed a fellow racer, Tony Stewart expressed his plan to return to the Sprint Cup scheduled on Sunday night at the Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Last Aug. 9, Kevin Ward Jr. died after Stewart's speeding car hit him during a sprint car event in New York. Reuters said the 3-time Nascar champion missed his races and was not seen in public since the tragic accident.

In a report by Sporting News, "Ward and Stewart were battling for position in an Empire Super Sprints event when Ward wrecked near the wall between turns 1 and 2. Ward got out of his car, approached on foot the cars that were running under caution, and was gesturing wildly at Stewart. He was then struck by Stewart's car and pronounced dead 45 minutes later upon arrival at a nearby hospital."

Police investigation continues until today, Sporting News revealed, and it is expected to last for about a week or so.

The results of the investigation would tell if Stewart will be facing criminal liabilities for Ward's death.

"We (will) conduct a thorough review of all of the relevant facts involving this tragic accident," Sheriff Philip Povero told Sporting News.

According to CNN, Stewart's camp claimed that the racer was also mourning Ward's death.

He released the following statement after the accident:

 "There aren't words to describe the sadness I feel about the accident that took the life of Kevin Ward Jr. It's a very emotional time for all involved. ... My thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and everyone affected by this tragedy."

This was however questioned by Ward's father who said that only Stewart "was the only one driving out there who didn't see him," according to Syracuse.com.

Ward Sr. also believed that his son was "put into the wall" that's why race car driver decided to step out of the car, which ultimately led to his death.

For Stewart's part, what happened was purely an accident that he did not want to happen.

Stewart, based from his career history in the sport, "Won first race of any kind behind the wheel of a go-kart in Westport, Ind." in 1979 and has achieved many victories since then. This year, he won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series on April 5, and the 360 Sprints on Dirt (SOD) Winged Sprint Car race on July 18, almost a year after his Sprint Car crash at the Southern Iowa Speedway.