RELATED: All of Stewart's premier series victories
None of us could have -- nor would have -- predicted at the time that Tony Stewart's win at Dover International Speedway in June of 2013 would have to stand nearly three years as his most recent NASCAR victory.
He led only the final three laps -- efficient checkered flag work -- beating Juan Pablo Montoya and Jeff Gordon following a late-race restart. And when Stewart showed up in the media center for his winner's press conference he was proud, but humble. Even a little surprised at the outcome.
He was also very "Tony-like" in answering reporters' questions, a little surly here and there, but funny and disarming.
It was vintage Tony from his opening remark.
"As much as I hate to say it, it's good to be back in the media center," Stewart joked.
As the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series heads back to Delaware for this weekend's AAA 400, it's a good time to reflect on that victory and wonder where Stewart's next will be as he charges toward a Chase berth in his final Sprint Cup season.
Although Stewart missed the first eight races of 2016 recovering from an offseason back injury, he is only 59 points behind 30th-place Regan Smith entering Sunday's race. A win and a top-30 points position gives Stewart a last shot at a fourth championship.
His 12th-place finish at Kansas last week in only his second full race back (Ty Dillon relieved Stewart at Talladega) was especially encouraging considering he had only five finishes of 12th or better all of last season.
There is good reason to be hopeful that Stewart will make one last run. And if anything, his 2013 win at Dover proved much is possible in the final laps at the "Monster Mile."
That win and Stewart's reaction was so reflective of the "Smoke" this sport has cheered on for the last 18 seasons.
Before acknowledging any of his own handiwork behind the wheel, Stewart thanked his then-crew chief Steve Addington for getting the No. 14 Chevy good enough to win. He recognized Competition Director Greg Zipidelli for his work in coordinating the Stewart-Haas team. And Stewart redirected any praise going toward himself.
"There should be about 200 people sitting here that are all responsible for this (victory) here," Stewart said.
RELATED: Stewart through the years
It was Stewart's first win since the summer Daytona race a year earlier and questions about his future, his team's future were starting to rumble in that 30-race span between victories. Looking back, it was a good problem to have.
Now he's competed 80 times over three seasons since that Dover win -- easily the longest winless streak in a sure-bet Hall of Fame career.
As the press conference continued that summer day at Dover, I remember watching Stewart and listening to him sound so genuinely grateful to hoist the trophy. He consistently deflected the praise, insisting the win was a reflection of his young Stewart-Haas Racing team, not so much his great ability to steer the car.
"I'll be honest," Stewart said. "I'm not the smartest guy in the world. You guys have known that over the last 15 years. I've proven that time and time again. I'm just smart enough to know to hire good people."
Even today, Stewart is humble recalling the victory.
"I remember thinking that if someone had told me we were going to win, I would've told them they were crazy," Stewart said this week. "We just didn't have the car to win the race, but we had great pit strategy at the end. ... We changed only two tires on that last stop to get up front. The car felt a lot better up there and it didn't seem like the guys who took four tires had a huge advantage taking off. When we noticed we were catching the leaders, we kind of got going on the bottom and made up even more time.
"It was just a big win for us and really gave us some momentum for the next few races."
There was no way to imagine all that has transpired in Stewart's life or his career since then. We knew he was a winner -- only 12 drivers have amassed more than his 48 wins -- but now we have been reminded that Stewart is also a motivated, highly determined survivor.
He is one of the most talented race car drivers in history.
If you are a believer in happy endings, or just confident that Stewart's great determination equals his great talent, then "Smoke will rise" – as they say. He will make this year's Chase, or at least give one heckuva run.