In an article by Susan Wade and published at Autoweek.com, Leah Pruett confirmed Tony Stewart was not the first choice for her replacement. It wasn’t that Stewart wasn’t capable because he was a licensed Top Fuel driver. The initial replacement was Lyle Barnett. 

On more than one occasion, Stewart had made it clear that driving a Top Fuel dragster full-time wasn’t his plan. He was content being a team owner and racing part-time with his Top Alcohol Dragster. 

On Thursday, at the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show in Indianapolis, Pruett announced she was stepping away from driving so she and Stewart could start a family. She had already set her sights on Radial Tire Racer turned Pro Modified frontrunner Barnett as her replacement. 

Then Stewart spoke up, and the plan changed abruptly. 

“I did not push Tony into this position at all,” Pruett told Wade. “But mid-season, when the conversation came up again, I had plans with another candidate. I was trying to develop a testing schedule for this individual (Barnett) and then Tony rose his hand. We were at the dinner table, actually, and he goes, ‘What about me?’ And I go, ‘Dude, last time we talked, you had no interest in replacing me just a few days ago.’ And so I go, ‘If you are truly interested, well then yeah, speak up now or forever hold your peace.”

Had Barnett ascended to the role of Pruett’s replacement, it would have completed one of the more inspirational storylines in drag racing history. On September 23, 2015, Barnett proudly proclaimed that he believed he was ten feet tall and bulletproof. The next day, he experienced one of the worst fires in drag racing history at South Georgia Motorsports Park when an engine failure engulfed the Corvette Radial vs. The World car he was driving, leaving him with third-degree burns to his face, hands, and feet. He spent the next few days fighting for his life. 

Barnett ended up building a relationship with Fire-Ade, a company credited with manufacturing environmentally formulated firefighting foam. Fire-Ade also was one of Pruett’s marketing partners at the time. 

“Leah and I stayed close and would talk here and there and see each other when they would come to Charlotte,” Barnett said. “Then I started racing NHRA Pro Mod, and so I was around more. And when she and Tony started dating, and he started coming around, I would usually try to hang out with him here and there, and I got to know her crew guys and whatnot.

“And I just expressed to her in the middle of the 2022 season that I had aspirations to drive Top Fuel. And I told ’em, ‘I’ve got some potential sponsors. Is there room for me at TSR for a second car if the money’s right? I told ’em from the get-go, ‘If I’m going to race nitro, I want to race with y’all. I like all of ’em. We all get along well. Matt Hagan and I are buddies. I just like their camp. I like all their guys. And it just felt like that’s where I wanted to be.”

Barnett and Pruett began talking as early as August 2022, and their conversations advanced to the point where he signed a non-disclosure agreement. 

Barnett prepared himself for the new journey by licensing in Randy Meyer A/Fuel Dragster. He was ready to assume the role as Pruett’s replacement at thie 2023 NHRA Gatornationals but the timeline changed on the process, and it appeared likely the change would happen at mid-season. Then by mid-season, Pruett was in the top half of the championship points so it didn’t appear likely the change would happen in 2023. 

Barnett said while he was disappointed, he understood Stewart’s desire to climb behind the wheel of the Top Fuel dragster. 

“I can’t say I wasn’t disappointed,” Barnett said. “But it’s Tony’s equipment and car. If he wants to drive it, then that’s his deal. But I’m not mad. Hopefully, should a seat become available again, whether it’s in the near future or five years from now, that I’ll still be the pick. The fact that not only was I considered, but I was the choice is pretty fricking cool.”

Barnett said he plans to return to Pro Mod action in 2024:

“I’ve got a good car. I’ve got a good team to race Pro Mod with. I mean, we’ll be a championship contender, for sure.”