LEAH PRUETT’s NHRA Mastery Lives On as Stewart Takes Over Her Top Fuel Seat

April 3, 2025

GRRL! SUMMARY:

LEAH PRUETT’s nearly decade-long NHRA Top Fuel mastery shines through Tony Stewart’s meticulous adoption of her organizational systems and racing approach. Her 18 wins since 2016 weren’t just about speed – they were built on precision, efficiency, and the kind of systematic thinking that turns chaos into championship-level performance. Stewart’s detailed walkthrough of “her” trailer shows he’s not just borrowing her seat; he’s studying her playbook.
The changing-room situation tells you everything about how teams adapt when they actually want women to succeed. What other drivers use as machine shops became “LEAH’s lounge” – a necessity that became an advantage Stewart now enjoys. It’s a small detail that highlights how thoughtful infrastructure changes can benefit everyone, not just the women who need them initially.
PRUETT’s burning desire to return to racing, combined with Stewart’s immediate willingness to step aside, shows the mutual respect driving this arrangement. “That race car is her race car,” Stewart said, and he means it. While Stewart chases his first Top Fuel win after nearly beating former champions, we’re watching a temporary stewardship that honors PRUETT’s legacy while she focuses on family.