Stewart set to be released from contract with JGR after this season

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Tony Stewart is expected to be released Wednesday from his contract with Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of the season, freeing the two-time NASCAR champion to purchase his own race team.

Stewart's contract runs through the 2009 season, but he was reluctant to commit to the extension Gibbs officials have been pushing for since last summer. He instead explored free agency, where numerous options were presented to Stewart ranging from ownership to seats driving for other top teams.

Mike Arning, a spokesman for Stewart, said an announcement concerning Stewart's future would be made Wednesday. ESPN.com reported late Tuesday night he would be released from his contract.

"We're just going to look at everything out there," Stewart said in April in announcing he'd test the market. "A wise person once told me it doesn't cost a dime to listen, so right now we're all ears."

While exploring his options, Stewart was most intrigued in potential ownership opportunities and he's had an offer on the table since April to purchase the fledgling two-car team of Haas-CNC Racing. By owning his own team, Stewart believed he could ensure a spot for himself in NASCAR long after his driving days.

But he first had to gain his release, something owner Joe Gibbs and team president J.D. Gibbs had insisted they would not agree to.

Smoke will no longer wear the Home Depot gear after his departure from JGR. (AP)

"We've got Tony signed through '08 and '09, and we want to go full bore and win a bunch of races and championships together," J.D. Gibbs said in April. "Our hope is that if you do that, then long term this will be the spot he chooses to retire. But the reality is we only control these next couple of years, and we went through this his last contract negotiations when he had a lot of options out there.

"Our hope is we do our job, and he retires here."

When it became clear Stewart wanted out, the Gibbs' finally relented and will apparently sign off on his early departure Wednesday. The team is expected to replace the 37-year-old Stewart, one of NASCAR's most celebrated drivers, with 18-year-old phenom Joey Logano with Home Depot staying on board as the sponsor.

Stewart is in his 10th season driving Gibbs' No. 20 car. He and crew chief Greg Zipadelli have been together since the start in NASCAR's longest active driver-crew chief pairing, and have racked up 32 Cup victories along the way.

Stewart was the 1999 rookie of the year, setting a record with three wins. He won Cup championships in 2002 and 2005 and has won at least two races a season through his first nine years. He's winless so far this season, and had to get out of his car because of illness midway through Saturday night's race.

Assuming Stewart does buy Haas-CNC, he'll re-establish his long relationship with Chevrolet. The partnership was partially fractured this season when Gibbs moved to Toyota. General Motors continued to sponsor the Sprint Cup teams that Stewart also owns.

Gene Haas, owner of the two-car team, began serving a two-year prison sentence for tax evasion in January. The team fields a car this season for Scott Riggs, and a second entry that has been piloted by several drivers. Neither car is in the top 35 in points, and the team was devastated in May by stiff NASCAR penalties for bringing illegal cars to a race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Stewart is expected to gut the organization and bring in his own people, including a second driver. Fellow Indiana native Ryan Newman is among those rumored to be in line to join Stewart's team next season.