Thanks to a push from Landon Cassill on the last lap, Tony Stewart beat Clint Bowyer by 0.007 seconds to win the Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway Saturday afternoon.
That's about a foot or two, by the way.
The win was Stewart's third straight win in the Nationwide season-opener and his sixth in the last seven years. That's a pretty incredible accomplishment, especially given the unpredictability of restrictor-plate racing.
Stewart's pass was a pretty incredible accomplishment too. He pushed Cassill to the front after the two started outside the top 10 with six laps to go, and the two swapped positions on the penultimate lap, and that swap looked momentarily like it would derail the momentum that the cars had gained.
However, going into turn one on the final lap, Kyle Busch, who was paired with Joey Logano on the outside, pushed Logano a little too hard, sending Logano into the wall. The caution wasn't thrown, and that allowed Stewart and Cassill to catch up to Bowyer and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt Jr. stuck to Bowyer's bumper as the two entered the trioval on the last lap and Stewart and Cassill went high. Bowyer went to block Stewart's charge, but Stewart stayed in the gas and nudged ahead just before the finish line.
Bowyer and Stewart -- both driving at Daytona for Kevin Harvick's race team -- had been drafting buddies most of the day, but got separated after the final caution when Stewart had to pit for a flat right rear tire.
Four of Stewart's six victories in this race have come with KHI, while the other two have come with Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports.
Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet Kurt Busch Miller Lite Dodge Jeff Gordon
No comments:
Post a Comment