“We had a race fan that probably had too much beer from my observations after speaking with him,” said Tulsa Deputy Police Chief and Expo Square Liaison officer Dennis Larson. “He kept taunting Tony Stewart as Tony would pass by. Tony came up to the stands and decided to have a discussion with him on why he did not like him.”

Stewart is not racing at this year’s Chili Bowl but is overseeing track maintenance. Because of that Stewart is in the infield constantly directing track preparation and sometimes will climb aboard a tractor.

“From what I was told Tony stated to him (the spectator), ‘What’s your problem with me?’” Larson said. “At some point their hands were locked together. The fan pushed toward Tony, Tony stepped back and a security guard basically stepped between the two and just made a motion and the fan, who had consumed a lot of alcohol, sat down.

“When you think about how bleachers are constructed. When you are standing the seat behind you is right behind your knees. It is very easy for a person to fall back and sit on the step right behind his chair, and that is what happen.”

Hess was escorted out of the Expo Center, Larson said.