Stewart rallies after pit miscue at Dover

DOVER, Del. - For 315 laps, Tony Stewart's day was perfect.

For one lap, it was awful. And for 84 laps, it was OK.

MBNA 400 Mark Martin celebrates his first win in two years Play video With oil on the track, Kahne spins from the lead Play video Nineteen cars suffer damage in a wreck on Lap 347 Play video Confusion reigns after Ryan Newman spins on pit road Play video Gordon and Nemechek hit the wall in different incidents Play video Ganassi teammates tangle in the early laps Play video  •  Results  •  Standings

The end result wasn't a victory, but a second-place finish isn't so bad.

"It was just an awesome race," Stewart said. "To finish second today was a good run for our team. We needed a good run like this, so we're all pretty happy today."

The runner-up finish matched Stewart's best of the season, scored in the Daytona 500. And it moved him to fourth place in the Nextel Cup points standings, 196 behind leader Dale Earnhardt Jr.

But second place isn't what Stewart is made of. He's a winner, and for 315 of Sunday's 400 laps around Dover International Speedway, the MBNA 400 was a victory waiting to happen.

Stewart started 10th and quickly moved to the lead and away from the field. He lapped cars left and right, getting more than half the field a lap down. Between laps 49 and 315, Stewart dominated to the tune of 234 laps led.

And then came the turning point. Or maybe the lack thereof.

Heading to pit road on Lap 316, Stewart couldn't get his car turned left enough and missed the entrance to the pits. That was the first time cars made green-flag pit stops, and Stewart said he simply messed up.

"I missed pit road," Stewart said. "Just missed pit road. I locked up the front wheels and followed the path where I locked it up. We've got the commitment line with those cones, and I couldn't go around the cones and come on in. We've got to be inside those cones. I just missed it getting in, and that was it.

"It was just a mistake on my part, trying to not give anything up getting on pit lane."

	Mark Martin (left) is greeted by Stewart in victory lane. Credit: AP

Stewart fell back to eighth, one lap down, but caught a minor break when Ryan Newman screwed up getting into the pits four laps later. He stayed one lap down but got back on the lead lap with the 19-car crash on Lap 347.

The pit mistake might have cost Stewart a chance at the victory, but he looked at it from another angle.

"It's possible," Stewart said. "Hindsight is always 20-20. But who knows with the accident that happened, where exactly we would've been in that pack. Things happen for a reason, and we ended up second. We're leaving here with our heads up high."

After the multi-car melee and the scoring snafus in the final 80 laps - "a circus, according to Stewart - the No. 20 was in good position to challenge for the victory.

Crew chief Greg Zipadelli brought Stewart in for four fresh tires, while leader Kasey Kahne and second-place Mark Martin stayed on the track.

And when Kahne spun and slapped the wall, Stewart was in good shape for the victory. All he had to do was pass Mark Martin.

	Stewart: Three straight top-10 finishes Credit: Autostock

Easier said than done, of course.

"Our car really liked to be up front in clean air," Stewart said. "Mark's a hungry guy. He wants to get that first championship under his belt. He wouldn't have let that one get away from him today."

So that left Stewart with a solid grip on second place. Well, until a fast-closing Earnhardt Jr. came up to fight him for it. Junior had fresher tires and got underneath Stewart a time or two in the closing laps, but Stewart was able to make the high groove work and held Earnhardt Jr. off.

"The fun thing about that is you can run that close like we did," Stewart said. "You trust Junior. You have a lot of faith and trust in the guy. Him and I are good buddies. I know he wouldn't do anything to put us in any compromising positions. He raced us hard, but he raced us clean.

"It made it fun at the end."

Even if it was only for second place. After Stewart's day, that might seem like a disappointment. But not after this crazy race.

"I feel pretty lucky to get out of here with second with the way this day ended up." Stewart said.