Other than the bare facts -- 50% ownership, team to be renamed Stewart-CNC -- Tony Stewart didn't have much to say in his press conference today.  No revelation of sponsors; no statements about teammates.  Stay tuned.

Regrettably, terrible Terry Blount failed to let any of this stop him from postulating about the above.  Or slamming Stewart in the process.

Fortunately, there is the opportunity to slam back...

Tony Stewart is leaving a team capable of winning a championship to co-own one that probably can't win a race.

I'm thinking maybe his presence and racing skill plus his acumen in the business side of racing might change that in the near future... like 2009.

And guess what? It's the right thing to do.

How nice of you to give him credit for that, considering what's coming next...

Stewart is securing his future beyond his years as a driver. He's showing a maturity and wisdom that many people, quite frankly, didn't believe he possessed.

Care to name names?  Other than yourself, Mr. King of Originality?

He's is acting like a grown-up, making a decision one would expect of a shrewd CEO in a major corporate boardroom.

"He's is?"  Now there's some mighty fine writin'.  Who's your editor -- Jayski?

Now, moving on to the slam.  To which part of the world haven't you been paying attention?  Stewart has demonstrated ample business skills on multiple levels.  Ever hear of a place called Eldora?  Notice the television listings for this little get-together there every year called Prelude to the Dream?  I hear it's kind of a big deal.  Just because Smoke doesn't suffer fools lightly does not mean he isn't 'all growed up.'  If anything, it shows far more maturity than those spilling gallons of electronic ink whining about how Stewart doesn't play nice with microphone-carrying morons.  There is much wisdom is adhering to a philosophy of avoiding time-wasting encounters with idiots.

For his fans, it seems like an odd move for a man who has some championship-contending years left in him. Stewart is a great driver, but his racing skills aren't enough to make newly named Stewart Haas Racing an immediate winner beginning in 2009.

Hmm.  Let's see here.  Stewart plus Hendrick engineering support plus sponsors plus a wad of R&D cash from Chevrolet regardless of whether they can afford it... methinks his fans aren't seeing it as an odd move.

No one can, and Stewart knows it. But Stewart isn't worried about 2009. He's looking down the road to 2015 and beyond.

Actually, yes a team can turn around that quickly.  The pieces are now in place to do just that.  And if you think Stewart's planning on doing nothing for the next few years except turn laps and smile as he contemplates his next snappy answer to the next stupid question you and your ilk ask, you really are as dumb as you sound.

This is a rare opportunity to take over an existing Sprint Cup team. The fact that Stewart recognized what an incredible deal it is tells us a lot about what he wants for his life.

To put up with you?  And for the record, the opportunity isn't that rare.  Not in these troubled economic times.

Stewart never intended to race in NASCAR. He came to the sport almost kicking and screaming. But Stewart understood that the break-up of his beloved Indy car racing left him no choice if he wanted to make the most of his talents.

"Almost kicking and screaming?"  R-i-g-h-t.  There was no gun pointed at his head.  He had multiple options.  He could have stayed in IRL.  He could have gone back to full-time dirt track racing.  Stewart chose NASCAR, which at the time seemed like not the best move.  He didn't blow anyone away in Busch.  But he stayed with it.

Eleven years later, Stewart feels NASCAR is his home. He wants to stay. Buying this team was a chance to do it, maybe his only chance.

Refer the earlier comment about troubled economic times.  This was, is, and will be anything but an only chance.

It is the deal of a lifetime. He doesn't have to start from scratch, something that would make the task a thousand times more difficult.

At least you got that right.

The foundation is in place. Stewart already has the big-name sponsors -- reportedly Office Depot, Old Spice and others -- lined up to back him. Chevrolet will support him 100 percent. Ryan Newman could be joining the team as the second driver.

Not bad for a supposed immature brat, eh?

Stewart's job is to hire the right people who can eventually make the organization a contender. And Stewart knows who they are. Some of them will jump at the opportunity to join him because they know he has the knowledge, the financing and the desire to make it work.

Or because they want to work for someone who's all about winning and knows how to get it done.  And, I suspect, will properly respect and reward those who demonstrate the same tenacious adherence to pursuing excellence with no excuses accepted.

That sounds easy, but it takes years to get enough quality individuals in all the right places to make a Cup operation successful.

Or quality coverage of a sport.  Maybe one of these years ESPN will get it right.  But I doubt it.

Stewart will get there, but it will take time. The question is can he get there before his competitive racing days are over?

The question is actually how can you be dumb enough to ask such a question.

Stewart turns 38 next season. He probably could race at a high level into his mid-40s. In three or four years, Stewart Haas Racing could become a decent team capable of winning while Stewart is still bumping fenders with the best of them.

Way before then, son.  Way before then.

The worst-case scenario is Stewart never races for a Cup title again. Historically, driver/owner combinations don't work well in NASCAR. Ask Michael Waltrip or Ricky Rudd or Darrell Waltrip.

Or Alan Kulwicki... oops, sorry, did I bring up the wrong example?

If anyone can do it, Stewart can. He's been multitasking successfully for years with his sprint-car teams and his dirt track in Rossburg, Ohio.

News flash: Stewart isn't Chip Ganassi.  He knows what it takes to build a winner in more than one kind of racing.

But failing to win another Cup title wouldn't mean Stewart made a mistake. He has two Cup championships. What he didn't have was a chance to guarantee he can do what he loves for the rest of his life.

Um... hello.  Dummy.  Stewart was already doing what he loves, with the dirt tracks and team to race on same.  He didn't need this to stay in racing.  He already was in racing.  He didn't need it at all.

This also is great news for NASCAR. The sport is desperate for new team owners. And Stewart is a racer's racer, not an investment firm that takes control of a team or a team owner from another sport who becomes a partner.

Wow -- right twice in the same story!  New record.

Stewart's goal is to become an owner in the model of Rick Hendrick, Richard Childress or Roger Penske, men he respects immensely.

He could do far worse, that's for sure.

He isn't doing this because he hates Toyota or he's jealous that Kyle Busch is the top dog now at Joe Gibbs Racing. Stewart has no animosity toward anyone at JGR. He's simply making the best decision for his future.

You know all this how?

Tony Stewart, left, and Joe Gibbs have won two titles together. They could still make it three.

Or more.

Look at it like this. You're an executive at a company. You like your job and you like the people with whom you work. But a competing company comes to you and says, "We'll give you 50 percent ownership and full control to run the business if you join us."

What would you do?

Depends on what kind of a risk-taker you are.  It's not a slam dunk.

Stewart is buying into a team whose current owner, Gene Haas, is in prison for tax evasion. Obviously, the odd situation has given him a chance to buy in at a bargain basement price.

The team's value is not going to decrease because of Gene Haas' legal woes.

No one is saying what that price is, but going by the Forbes Magazine list on the worth of top Cup teams, the organization probably is worth in the neighborhood of $70 million.

If Stewart bought in for $30 million to $35 million, he got the deal of the century for an existing Cup team.

Only if a crate of avocados was part of the deal.

And don't shed any tears for JGR. This is the right move for that team, also. Keeping a driver who has his heart set on the next stage of his career never works out.

Because we all know all parties involved roll over and quit, right?

Gibbs has the hottest driver in NASCAR with Busch and one of the best young racers in Cup in Denny Hamlin. And super phenom Joey Logano is waiting in the wings.

And Stewart's a banana slug?

Whether 18-year-old Logano is ready to race Cup next year is impossible to say. He has competed in four Nationwide events (with one victory) and no Cup races.

Bank on him being in Cup in 2009.

If JGR officials decide he needs another year before going to Cup, so be it. Quality drivers will line up to jump in the No. 20 Toyota in 2009.

Um... if they're quality drivers they're already under contract.  And if not, are you going to want to sign up knowing you're either keeping the seat warm for Logano or will be shuttled off to a fourth team when Logano steps in?

But Stewart has made a decision from his heart. He wants to be involved at the highest level of NASCAR racing for the rest of his life.

Racing, yes.  NASCAR?  Eh.

That big door of opportunity opened. It was now or never. Stewart wisely walked through to try to change his life and his legacy forever.

"Try?"  "TRY?!!"  I'd say he's accomplished the feat quite nicely, thank you.

Why does ESPN keep subjecting us to this?