Stewart's Talladega slump remains even in dominance

TALLADEGA, Ala. -- It's no secret Tony Stewart has never won at Talladega. In 19 races at the track he's been the runner-up six times and in the top 10 in 11 events. Sunday's Aaron's 499 looked to be lucky No. 20.

Stewart led a race-high 61 laps and appeared to be on his way to Victory Lane. But on Lap 144 of the 188-lap event, Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. were battling for the lead when Stewart's No. 20 Toyota had a tire go down, pushing him into the wall.

Aaron's 499

Official Results

Pos.	Driver	Make
1.	Kyle Busch	Toyota
2.	Juan Montoya	Dodge
3.	Denny Hamlin	Toyota
4.	David Ragan	Ford
5.	Brian Vickers	Toyota
6.	Travis Kvapil	Ford
7.	Casey Mears	Chevrolet
8.	Ryan Newman	Dodge
9.	Clint Bowyer	Chevrolet
10.	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet

• Complete Results | Lap-by-Lap
• Race Video | Photo Gallery

Stewart was able to remain on the lead lap, but restarted 31st and had a ton of spots to make up.

"The majority of the day we had a great day going," Stewart said. "We were really in good shape in this car until I had the right-front go down and then I got us in the back. As late as it is in the race with 15 laps to go, you've got to sit there and do what you can to get those spots back."

Stewart was able to work his way up to 13th when he and Earnhardt bumped, causing Bobby Labonte to spin on Lap 173, collecting Stewart and five other cars and ending the No. 20's day (watch video).

"I thought we were all right and the closer we got to Turn 1 the smaller that hole got so I was as close to Bobby as I could get and the hole closed up," Stewart said. "It's just what happens late in these races. If it was my fault, I'm sorry. By looking at the video, though, I don't feel like I did anything wrong, really."

When good cars go bad
Sunday's running of the Aaron's 499 was clean for most of the day. The first 166 laps saw just five cautions -- two for debris and three for single-car incidents. But the final 13 laps saw three cautions, two for the Big One, including the one on the final lap that ended the race under yellow and ruined possible top-10 days for multiple cars (watch video).

"We were in good position toward the end but got there just a little too early," said Jimmie Johnson, who finished 13th. "[Michael Waltrip] and I were working well together but I think he blew up at the end there with me pushing him. We got some damage on the last lap, but we came out OK."

Johnson was one of the lucky ones. Richard Childress Racing's Kevin Harvick was on the move the final lap until bad luck ruined his day.

"We were in a good pack moving up in the field there at the end, then we got caught in the big wreck on the last lap," Harvick said after finishing 24th. "Wish we had a better finish but it could be much, much worse."

For pole-sitter Joe Nemechek, whose No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet is outside the top 35 in owner points, a top-10 finish would have been huge. But after getting collected in the final crash, he finished 25th and didn't have the points day he was hoping for.

"After taking the white flag, I was looking for a top-10 finish, but then came the wreck," Nemechek said. "I thought I had it missed, but at the last second [Johnson] came across my hood.

"We're a little frustrated right now, but looking at the big picture it was a solid weekend for the team. We qualified on the pole and had a solid performance in the race."

Smoke and Coach

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• Video: SPEED Raceday

A surprise in the top 10
At Talladega, you can be up front one lap and down to 20th the next. That's what happened most of the day to Travis Kvapil and his No. 28 Yates Racing Ford as he kept his car consistently in the top 20 all day and brought home a sixth-place finish.

"That was awesome," Kvapil said. "We just had a really good car and we stayed out of trouble. I just logged 490 miles worth of learning the moves I could make and what I couldn't make, and who would or wouldn't go with me.

"I learned my car was fast, but nobody really wanted to go with me, so I knew I just had to stay in line and push as much as I could. We got toward the front, we got toward the back -- just a great day overall, stayed out of trouble and the car was fast enough to drive our way back up there when it counted."

Kvapil's sixth-place finish moves him up to 23rd in the point standings, and gives him two top-10 finishes on the season. He says he can feel the No. 28 team is starting to head in the right direction.

"That's our second top-10 out of nine races so I'm really pleased," Kvapil said. "We've been a consistent top-25 car every week, and we need to be a top-15 car. Our team is getting better. We're gaining momentum and I think by mid-season or so we should really start to be a regular top-15 car."

No Smoke at Hendrick
When Stewart announced he had received offers from multiple teams, rumors and speculation ran rampant among the media and others in the garage as to exactly who was hoping to win the services of one of NASCAR's most popular drivers.

So of course, Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports and winner of last year's free-agent signing of Dale Earnhardt Jr., was asked if there was room for Stewart in his garage, especially since Hendrick runs Chevrolets, which Stewart lost when Joe Gibbs Racing switched to Toyotas this season.

"I think that's the deal where Tony has a lot of loyalty to Chevrolet, and Tony and Chevrolet have a great relationship. It's really more of a thing between them," Hendrick said. "He's a heck of a talent and he's got a lot of fans, and a lot of fans want to see him in a Chevrolet, I guess. But I really don't have a dog in this fight, believe it or not."

"He's a great guy and a great friend, but you won't see Tony Stewart in the 5 car. You can write that."

With Jeff Gordon, Johnson and Earnhardt locked up in the Hendrick garage, that leaves Casey Mears' No. 5 as the only possibility for Stewart. But Hendrick says he has all the faith in Mears to turn things around, and unless NASCAR changes the rules of a four-car maximum, bringing Stewart into the mix is not going to happen.

"As far as my organization goes, we're full -- unless you can get Mr. Helton to allow me to have five years to get rid of one team, like Roush. Can you do that?"