Stewart leaves 'em in stitches after crash

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It was one bizarre and unintentionally hilarious moment Sunday outside the care center at Daytona International Speedway, and Tony Stewart was the star.

Stewart, his orange and black fire suit pulled down around his waist, played referee as reporters scrambled to talk to him after he crashed on Lap 154 of the Daytona 500.

"Guys, hold on a moment, I got nowhere to be right now," Stewart said as he approached the mob. "Easy there, bud! You tried to rip the man's glasses off there!"

The ongoing crush didn't bother Stewart, even after he finished last in a race he desperately wanted to win. Stewart had dominated Speedweeks -- he won the Bud Shootout and his 150-mile qualifier -- and he appeared headed for the hat trick.

"Two out of the three days isn't exactly what we wanted, [but we] really can't complain," Stewart said. "Just a little disappointed a little bit. I knew we had a good car. We knew it from the beginning of the week on."

He led 35 laps -- second to Kurt Busch, who inadvertently played a major role in putting Stewart in the garage.

On Lap 154, Stewart was in Turn 4 when he and Busch made contact, sending the No. 20 hard into the wall. For the second time in his career, Stewart exited the Daytona 500 with a last-place finish.

"It scared me a little bit because it reminded me of the [Dale] Earnhardt hit [in 2001], but that is why we got the safety devices we got," Stewart said. "I am fine. I am just feeling bad for our guys. This is the best shot we have had to win the 500."

Stewart probably would have led more than 35 laps -- his Chevrolet was able to travel anywhere on the track he wanted it to go -- but a botched pit stop on Lap 82 sent him to the rear of the field.

On that lap, Stewart was trying to exit his pits before Robby Gordon, who was trying to enter his box. Stewart stalled his car, costing him several seconds, and that mistake was compounded when he was saddled with a speeding penalty.

It took him just 50 laps to catch the leaders again.

"I thought I was pretty methodical about how I got back up there; I felt like I took the right time and went with the guys I needed to go with," Stewart said. "When it was time to go, it was time to go. There's nothing I can do about it now. I could hang my head, I could be mad, whatever, and it is not going to help at this point."

The crash heavily damaged the restrictor-plate car that Stewart had used to win the two previous summer races at Daytona. Because of his July success, Stewart was a heavy favorite to give Joe Gibbs Racing its first Daytona 500 win since 1993, when Dale Jarrett won in the organization's third year.

The loss hit team owner Joe Gibbs especially hard.

"We just hate it. You've got to wait all the way until next year to have a chance again here," Gibbs said.