CUP: Tony Stewart Wins Coke Zero 400

Sprint Cup

CUP: Tony Stewart Wins Coke Zero 400

Stewart survived a last-lap battle with Kyle Busch to win the Coke Zero 400.

Tom Jensen | Posted July 04, 2009 Daytona Beach, FL

Tony Stewart (Right) and Gene Haas (Left) celebrate in Victory Lane at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Tony Stewart leads Kyle Busch late in the race. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Tony Stewart prevailed in a late-race shootout to win Saturday night’s Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway.

Kyle Busch took the lead with 2 laps to go, but on the last lap, Stewart got a push from Jimmie Johnson. Busch dove low on the straightaway trying to block Stewart, then came back up and was hit by Stewart, triggering a massive end of race crash.

Tony Stewart STATS

Johnson finished second, followed by Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards and Kurt Busch.

NASCAR Sprint Cup points leader Stewart started from the pole, flanked by Jeff Gordon. The first caution came on Lap 14, when Mark Martin and Matt Kenseth made contact on the exit of Turn 2, Martin’s Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet suffering heavy nose damage after hitting the inside wall on the backstretch.

Under caution, the field pitted for the first time. Stewart came out leading ahead of Hamlin, Johnson, Marcos Ambrose and Kasey Kahne.

The race restarted on Lap 17, Stewart making an excellent two-wide restart and holding onto the point over Johnson and Hamlin.

Casey Mears brought out caution No. 2 on Lap 29 when David Stremme came down on him and hit him at virtually the same spot on the track as where the Martin-Kenseth crash occurred. Mears backed his car into the inside wall, tearing up his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet badly.

That triggered the second round of pit stops. Stewart again came out first, trailed by Hamlin, Kenseth, Elliott Sadler and Johnson.

The track went green at Lap 32, but this time Hamlin made a better restart and took the lead, with his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch taking second. But by Lap 46, Stewart was back out front, his Chevy looking strong.

Page 1 of 3

12 3

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom Jensen

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR

CUP: Monday NASCAR Notebook
Jimmie Johnson has the most victories of any active driver at Charlotte…
CUP: EXCLUSIVE - No Crew Chief Changes At SHR
Ryan Newman had the best finish of any of the Stewart-Haas drivers…
CUP: More All-Star Frustration For JGR
Matt Kenseth had a disappointing Sprint All-Star Race finish……