Stewart Goes Two for Two with Sylvania 300 Victory

Dinner is on Tony Stewart tonight.
Credit: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR

Tony Stewart earned his 41^st career victory in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) and second Chase race win of the 2011 season in the 15^th Annual Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (NHMS).

Stewart, who is now the points leader in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, is the only other driver besides Greg Biffle to win the first two races in the Chase. This is his 13^th top-10 of the season and his third victory and 16^th top-10 at NHMS.

Following the race Stewart explained that he was confident they had the winning car. "Pretty much the first two-thirds of the day we were in traffic," Stewart said in his post-race press conference. "So we just never got clean air to do anything. The closer to the front we got, the better it drove. Man, what a way to win it."

Rounding out the top-five were Brad Keselowski, Greg Biffle, Jeff Gordon and Brian Vickers.

The second NSCS visit to NHMS was full of surprises from the beginning. Only two of the top-five starters were Chase drivers. Newman earned his second pole at NHMS this season. Brian Vickers surprised everyone nabbing the provisional pole before being knocked off by teammate Kasey Kahne, who then was knocked off by Newman.

On lap 294 Newman pit for a down tire, placing him costing him four spots in the point standings.

Kahne who started the race in second next to Newman ended the race in 15^th after issues with pit sequence. Teammate Vickers had some better luck finishing in fifth after starting third.

The biggest losers in the points race were Kurt Busch (down five spots), Newman (down four spots) and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (down three spots). The drivers who gained the most were Jeff Gordon who gained six spots and Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski and Matt Kenseth who all gained three spots.

The NSCS heads to Dover next week where Matt Kenseth was the race winner in the Spring race.

Coming off of two consecutive wins, Stewart does not see Dover as his next place to take home a Chase race victory.

"We've got a hurdle ahead of us next week at Dover," said Stewart. "We really struggled there and that's the one race in the Chase that I'm worried about most. So this is the best scenario we can have going into it."

Race Results:

1. Tony Stewart

2. Brad Keselowski

3. Greg Biffle

4. Jeff Gordon

5. Brian Vickers

6. Matt Kenseth

7. David Ragan

8. Carl Edwards

9. Juan Pablo Montoya

10. Regan Smith

11. Kyle Busch

12. Kevin Harvick

13. Jeff Burton

14. Joey Logano

15. Kasey Kahne

16. Martin Truex, Jr.

17. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

18. Jimmie Johnson

19. Bobby Labonte

20. Paul Menard

21. AJ Allmendinger

22. Kurt Busch

23. Jamie McMurray

24. Mark Martin

25. Ryan Newman

26. Clint Bowyer

27. JJ Yeley

28. David Reutimann

29. Denny Hamlin

30. Marcos Ambrose

31. Mike Bliss

32. David Gilliland

33. Landon Cassill

34. Andy Lally

35. Dave Blaney

36. Joe Nemechek

37. Michael McDowell

38. David Stremme

39. Josh Wise

40. Robby Gordon

41. Scott Speed

42. Casey Mears

43. Travis Kvapil