Tony Stewart won't race Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, the third Sprint Cup event he's skipped since he struck and killed Kevin Ward Jr. during a race.
Stewart will be replaced by Jeff Burton again in the No. 14 Chevrolet, according to the Associated Press. Burton also drove Stewart's car at Michigan last week.
Stewart-Hass Racing is letting Stewart take some time away from the track, and his team indicated that he is taking it "week-by-week."
The three-time NASCAR champion won't have to decide on another race until Aug. 31 at Atlanta.
Stewart also didn't race at Watkins Glen, which started 12 hours after his car hit Ward in Canandaigua, New York.
On Aug. 9, Stewart, 43, was competing at the Canandaigua Motorsports Park when he clipped the car of 20-year-old driver Kevin Ward Jr., according to video of the event published online shortly after the incident.
Ward then got out of his vehicle and onto the track and seemed to gesture at Stewart before being hit and killed by Stewart's vehicle.
"There aren't words to describe the sadness I feel about the accident that took the life of Kevin Ward Jr.," Stewart said in a statement after the incident, according to Reuters.
Ward died shortly after of blunt force trauma, according to AP.
Authorities are still investigating the incident. Ontario County Sheriff Philip Povero said recently that investigators didn't have any evidence to support criminal intent by Stewart.
The investigation is expected to last at least another week.
"Tony Stewart was the best damn driver by far on the track that night. Why he had to go up as high as he did and hog my son, there's no reason for it," said Kevin Ward Sr. according to the Syracuse Post-Standard.
Kevin Harvick, Stewart's longtime friend and teammate, came to his pal's defense after the incident.
"I've known Tony Stewart for a long time. I know for sure that Tony Stewart is not going to run over somebody," Harvick said, according to AP. "I don't think there's anybody in this garage that would. It would be hard to find somebody in the racing world that could point that car, just run somebody over."
After the incident, NASCAR announced a rule prohibiting drivers from exiting from a crashed or disabled vehicle, unless it is on fire.
Stewart has 48 career Cup wins in over 542 starts, according to ESPN. Ward's funeral was held on August 14.
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