Stewart-Haas Racing: Pocono 500 Race Report
STEWART-HAAS RACING
Pocono 500 Race Report
Date: June 7, 2009
Event: Pocono 500 (Round 14 of 36)
Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Location: Pocono (Pa.) Raceway (2.5-mile triangle)
Winner: Tony Stewart of Stewart-Haas Racing (Chevrolet)
SHR Finish: Tony Stewart (Started 43rd, Finished 1st / Running, completed 200 of 200 laps)
Ryan Newman (Started 5th, Finished 5th / Running, completed 200 of 200 laps)
Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet Impala SS, led the two-car Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) contingent at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway by winning Sunday’s Pocono 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. Making the win even more remarkable was that Stewart did it after starting last in the 43-car field, as he was forced to a backup racecar after a spin in Saturday morning’s practice session damaged the nose of his Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet. Stewart led twice for 39 laps en route to his 34th career Sprint Cup victory and first of the season.
The win yielded another first, as Stewart became the first driver/owner to win a Sprint Cup race since Ricky Rudd on Sept. 27, 1998 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway – a span of 375 races. Stewart, who co-owns SHR with Oxnard, Calif.-based Haas Automation, came to Pocono after ending another streak for driver/owners. In finishing second last Sunday at Dover (Del.) International Speedway, Stewart took the lead in the championship standings. It was the first time a driver/owner sat atop the point standings since Nov. 15, 1992 when Alan Kulwicki clinched the title by 10 points over Bill Elliott at Atlanta Motor Speedway, ending a 556-race span.
The win was also the first point-paying victory for SHR. Stewart won the non-point NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race May 16 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway near Charlotte, N.C., but it didn’t award any points toward the season-ending championship. The Pocono 500 did, and along with the high-fives and backslaps enjoyed in victory lane, Stewart now has a 71-point lead to enjoy over second-place Jeff Gordon heading into the series’ next race at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn.
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 39 Haas Automation Demo Day/U.S. Army Chevrolet Impala SS for SHR, finished fifth in the Pocono 500 to secure his sixth consecutive top-10 finish. The result allowed Newman to gain one spot in the championship standings, bringing him to fourth, 203 points behind teammate Stewart.
Carl Edwards finished 2.004 seconds behind Stewart in the runner-up slot, while David Reutimann, Gordon and Newman rounded out the top-five. Marcos Ambrose, Jimmie Johnson, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jeff Burton and Sam Hornish Jr., comprised the remainder of the top-10.
There were five caution periods for 20 laps, with five drivers failing to finish the 500-mile race.
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the June 14 LifeLock 400 at Michigan International Speedway. The race begins at 2 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by TNT beginning with its pre-race show at 12:30 p.m.
