Stewart nets All-Star win
CONCORD, N.C. — Tony Stewart crossed the finish line for his first victory as a car owner and made some rapid-fire decisions.
No, he would not climb the Lowe's Motor Speedway fence in celebration.
No, he would not go to his beloved Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday to watch — or participate — in the final day of qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.
The only thing Stewart had in mind was a long night of celebrating the first victory for Stewart-Haas Racing on Saturday night in the $1 million All-Star event.
"I don't even know if I'll be conscious tomorrow," he joked. "We're going to start an over/under to see what time I actually wake up, and then you guys might want to start a second pool to see what time I actually climb out of bed. So, no, I am not going to Indy.
"I don't know what day this day is actually going to end. I would like to go. And I am sure at some point tomorrow — thank God for Tivo, lets put it that way — I'll at least see what happened at some point."
Stewart passed Matt Kenseth with two laps to go in a thrilling final 10-lap shootout to win for the first time in 11 All-Star event starts. It was the first victory since he left Joe Gibbs Racing at the end of last year, after two championships and 10 successful seasons, to become co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing.
In just six months, Smoke has turned his new toy into a championship contender.
He came into the race second in the Sprint Cup Series standings. He's put both himself and teammate Ryan Newman (eighth in points) in position for berths in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
Both have been closing in on Victory Lane.
