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Tag: Sonoma Raceway

  • Dominant Truex Drive Defeated by Engine Failure

    Dominant Truex Drive Defeated by Engine Failure

    A great day for Martin Truex Jr. ended behind the wall in the closing laps of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

    Starting the day in third, Truex worked his way to the race lead by out-braking Kyle Larson going into Turn 11 on Lap 10. He briefly lost the lead opting to pit under the Lap 14 caution that flew for a spin in Turn 11 but took it back from AJ Allmendinger on Lap 22 to win the first stage (his 11th of the season).

    Truex led the first 13 laps of the second stage before pitting under the lap 38 caution, which flew for debris and finished outside the top-10 in the stage.

    He found his way back to the front with 43 laps to go, out-braking Kevin Harvick entering Turn 11, only to pit from the lead three laps later and exit behind Harvick, who pitted the lap prior, due to a slow stop.

    Shortly thereafter, Truex reported that he was down a cylinder. The issue briefly subsided and he picked up his pace. With 24 to go, however, he made an unscheduled pit stop, then took his car to the garage because the engine expired.

    He said afterward that he “was on seven cylinders” for roughly “about 20 laps.”

    “It’s very disappointing, I mean, sitting there running second on seven cylinders and staying right with the leader,” Truex said. “I mean this Toyota was so good today. Everyone at Furniture Row Racing did an awesome job with it. Everybody back in Denver, thank you for just crazy fast cars. TRD (Toyota Racing Development) stuff has been really good for the past year and a half. You know sometimes these things happen, so appreciate all their effort out there at TRD. Makes good power. It’s just this one wasn’t ready to go the whole distance today.”

    Truex leaves Sonoma trailing Larson by 13 points.

  • Harvick Captures First Win of Season at Sonoma

    Harvick Captures First Win of Season at Sonoma

    Kevin Harvick played the pit strategy game correctly and made a pass for the lead in the closing laps to win for the first time in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season.

    Shortly after losing the lead to Martin Truex Jr. with 43 laps to go, Harvick hit pit road to make his final stop of the race. Combined with a slow stop from race leader Truex two laps later, Harvick cycled ahead of Truex in the running order, putting him behind race leader Brad Keselowski.

    With 22 to go, Harvick out-braked him going into Turn 7a and drove on to score the victory in the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway.

    “I am so excited,” Harvick said. “I think as you look at it, getting our first win with Ford, this has been a great journey for us as an organization and team. Kurt winning the Daytona 500 and we have run well. Everybody from Bush, Jimmy John’s and Mobil 1, Outback, Hunt Brothers and everybody. It is a great day. It finally all came together and we were able to not have any cautions there at the end. Rodney had great strategy and I was able to take care of the car and get out front. I felt like the 78 was the car we had to race and then he had problems and from there we were in control.”

    It’s his 36th career victory in 590 starts and first at Sonoma Raceway.

    “It means a ton to finally check this one off the list,” Harvick added. “I feel like we have been close a couple times but never put it all together. Being so close to home and having raced here so much, this was one that was on the top of the list and today we were able to check that box.”

    Teammate Clint Bowyer brought his car home second, while Keselowski rounded out the podium in third.

    “You get there back in traffic and you’re so much faster than them you have to check up to save a mistake,” Bowyer said. “You run over them and you don’t mean to; you get frustrated and get a little bit farther behind and a little bit farther behind. I saw the 42 check up and I get into him and I was thinking, ‘Well, we’ll both survive this’. And then all of a sudden the 47 was coming through him and I smoked him and hurt the left front. We were fast all weekend. With clean air and a long run, that’s always my strong suit. We got the long run, we just hard to start dead last to get it.”

    “The Freightliner Ford was really good today,” Keselowski said. “We didn’t have the qualifying fun we wanted. We had amazing race pace. That’s a credit to everyone at Team Penske. It felt really good. I just wish I could run this race again I think I might have had better car than driver today and I learned a lot. Just an amazing fun day.”

    Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch rounded out the top-five.

    Dale Earnhardt Jr., Kurt Busch, Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney and Jamie McMurray rounded out the top-10.

    Kyle Larson led the field to the green flag at 3:22 p.m. He held it for the first nine laps before Truex out-braked him going into Turn 11 to take the lead on Lap 10. A caution halfway through the stage shuffled the pit strategies, as is typical with a road course race, resulting in Chris Buescher, who elected not to pit, taking the lead under the caution. Teammate AJ Allmendinger took it from him exiting Turn 10 on Lap 19 and lost it to Truex in Turn 11 on Lap 22, who drove on to win the first stage.

    Truex retained the lead until he pitted under the Lap 38 caution, which went to Jimmie Johnson, who drove on to win the second stage.

    Denny Hamlin restarted the race with 56 to go as the race leader, having opted not to pit under the second stage caution. Kyle Busch took it from him going into Turn 11 with 47 to go and let Harvick power by him for the lead on the frontstretch two laps later. Truex returned to the front with 43 to go, out-braking Harvick going into Turn 11.

    A cycle of green flag stops occurred with 42 to go, with Truex pitting and exiting behind Harvick, setting up the run to the finish.

    Earnhardt brought out the first caution on lap 14 when he wheel-hopped, got loose going into Turn 11 and spun out. On the lap 30 restart, Earnhardt, Ryan Blaney and Danica Patrick ran three-wide going through Turn 4a, resulting in Patrick spinning out and getting t-boned by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. On the final lap, Kasey Kahne slammed the outside barrier on the frontstretch.

    The race lasted two hours, 46 minutes and 52 seconds at an average speed of 78.710 mph. There were 13 lead changes among 10 different drivers and six cautions for 12 laps.

    Larson leaves with a 13-point lead over Truex.

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  • Larson Takes Pole Position at Sonoma

    Larson Takes Pole Position at Sonoma

    Despite a botched entry into the final turn, Kyle Larson won the pole for the Toyota/Save Mart 350 after posting the fastest time in the final round of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying at Sonoma Raceway.

    His No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet carried a tad too much speed and about lost the car from behind going into Turn 11, but got an excellent drive off to stay in the green and post a time of 1:15.177 and a speed of 95.295 mph.

    Larson said afterward that his entire lap “actually felt pretty bad.”

    “I messed up into (Turn) 1 and into (Turn) 2 and was out a little bit too far,” he said. “Yeah, I felt like I gave up enough there that I wouldn’t have a shot at the pole. I thought maybe I’d maintain and run about the same lap time as the previous run. So, I was surprised and I was happy about that. This is cool to get a pole on a road course at my home state. This is my closest track to Sacramento or Elk Grove where I grew up. I have lots of friends and family here. We’re going to celebrate with the team. The Target Chevy was good. And then we’re going to head out to Calistoga and go watch some Sprint Car racing. So, I’m excited about that.”

    It’s his fourth pole in 127 career starts, third of the season and his second consecutive pole.

    Teammate Jamie McMurray will start his No. 1 Ganassi Chevrolet second after posting a time of 1:15.249 and a speed of 95.204 mph.

    “I have been on the pole here three times and haven’t been able to win the race. So, I’m not as worried with qualifying as excited as I am for how good our car was in race trim,” McMurray said. “We did two or three long runs and the car had good initial speed and I didn’t think it fell off as much as some of the other cars did. The No. 78 looked really fast, but I thought overall our car was one of the best in race trim. So, the fact that we have a good starting spot at the beginning is going to be big. The stages are going to be interesting to see how that affects the race or if it does. But, yeah, got a good car and just ready for tomorrow.”

    Martin Truex Jr. will start his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota third after posting a time of 1:15.453 and a speed of 94.947 mph. Kyle Busch will start his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota fourth after posting a time of 1:15.459 and a speed of 94.939 mph. AJ Allmendinger will round out the top-five starters in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet after posting a time of 1:15.553 and a speed of 94.821 mph.

    Danica Patrick, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Chris Buescher and Dale Earnhardt Jr. round out the top-10.

    Daniel Suarez and Kevin Harvick round out the 12 drivers that made the final round of qualifying.

    No drivers were sent home for failing to make the race.

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  • Earnhardt Retirement Gift Tour Kicks Off at Sonoma

    Earnhardt Retirement Gift Tour Kicks Off at Sonoma

    With the 2017 season nearing the halfway mark and Dale Earnhardt Jr. retiring at the end of it, the retirement gifts for NASCAR’s favorite driver will come with greater frequency if past history is any indicator.

    In the last two years, a new tradition has formed — in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series — that when a well-known driver begins his final season, he must be showered with gifts and honors from almost every track on the circuit. Even if the driver asks not to be showered with gifts, in the case of Jeff Gordon, or even flat our says he won’t take part in coming to the deadline room week after week to talk about what it’s like to race his last race at *insert track,* as was the case with Tony Stewart, he finally caves in and takes part in a great (Gordon) or small (Stewart) degree.

    Having only announced his retirement the day after a wreck resulted in a 38th-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway in April, eight races into the season, Earnhardt had avoided this. That all changed today at Sonoma Raceway.

    When he arrived to meet with the media corp in the deadline room, Sonoma Raceway General Manager Steve Page announced that, along with a commemorative giant bottle of red wine, he’d had three service dog puppies, who’d live their lives in Sonoma County, California serving children with disabilities, named after him and wife Amy.

    “Yeah, this is really, obviously we all heard the story and I think it’s a great thing that the track did,” Earnhardt said. “Amy is going to love this idea and she is going to be a little sad she wasn’t here to see the dogs today, but it’s nice to know that these types of things are happening and you guys are making a difference in people’s lives. We really appreciate that and obviously, thank the track for their investment to make this happen. It warms my heart. We do love dogs and love making a difference in kids’ lives and this is a twofer. Pretty neat deal. Just thanks a lot. Excited to maybe come back and see how the dogs are doing. Be a lot of fun to do that. We aren’t disappearing we will be back to see you guys again, so thank you.

    “I love the idea that we… I can’t really say we, but the race track is going to do something that makes a difference for someone else,” he added. “Our whole idea on finishing up the season is to try to show our appreciation. And sort of express that to our fans and everyone in the industry on making this an incredibly enjoyable ride. This fits right into that. It’s awesome that we are going to be able or they are going to be able to help somebody and help some kids. These dogs are going to have wonderful lives and they are going to enjoy doing that as well. The dogs will enjoy making a difference in someone’s life. That’s pretty cool.”

  • Larson Fastest in Sonoma Final Practice

    Larson Fastest in Sonoma Final Practice

    Kyle Larson topped the chart in final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Sonoma Raceway.

    The driver of the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet was the fastest with a time of 1:15.899 and a speed of 94.389 mph. Kyle Busch was second in his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 1:15.935 mph. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was third in his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 1:16.017 and a speed of 94.242 mph. AJ Allmendinger was fourth in his No. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet with a time of 1:16.034 and a speed of 94.221 mph. Jamie McMurray rounded out the top-five in his No. 1 Ganassi Chevrolet with a time of 1:16.199 and a speed of 94.017 mph.

    Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer, Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top-10.

    Larson posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 91.817 mph.

    With less than 15 minutes remaining in the session, Chase Elliott got loose in Turn 10, spun and hit the outside wall. The damage forced him to roll out his backup car. In the opening minutes, Erik Jones spun out in Turn 11 and hit the tire barrier, forcing him to roll out his backup car.

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  • Truex Fastest in First Practice at Sonoma

    Truex Fastest in First Practice at Sonoma

    Martin Truex Jr. topped the chart in first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Sonoma Raceway.

    The driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing was the fastest with a time of 1:15.740 and a speed of 94.587 mph. Denny Hamlin was second in his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota with a time of 1:16.158 and a speed of 94.068 mph. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was third in his No. 17 Roush Fenway Racing Ford with a time of 1:16.470 and a speed of 93.684 mph. Clint Bowyer was fourth in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford with a time of 1:16.534 mph. Dale Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the top-five in his No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet with a time of 1:16.609 and a speed of 93.154 mph.

    Chris Buescher, AJ Allmendinger, Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch and Joey Logano rounded out the top-10.

    Busch posted the fastest 10 consecutive lap average at a speed of 91.852 mph.

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  • Sonoma Raceway – Did You Know?

    Sonoma Raceway – Did You Know?

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series travels to Sonoma Raceway this weekend for the Toyota/Save Mart 350. Thirty-eight drivers will compete but only one will make it to the Wine Country Winner’s Circle for a champagne celebration.

    Sunday’s race will be the 29th Cup Series event at Sonoma. The inaugural race was held on June 11, 1989, with Ricky Rudd holding off Rusty Wallace to win the Banquet Frozen Foods 300. It was his only victory that year, though Rudd would go on to win again in 2002. But did you know he is one of only six drivers with multiple wins at the track?

    Jeff Gordon leads the series with five victories at the road course, including three consecutively, from 1998 – 2000. Tony Stewart has three trophies but did you know he captured the final win of his Cup career last year at Sonoma, ending an 84-race winless drought?

    Ernie Irvan, Rusty Wallace and Rudd have two wins each. Kyle Busch has scored two checkered flags, in 2008 and 2015, and is the only active driver with multiple wins.

    The Sonoma race will consist of 110 laps on the 1.990-miles road course which is lined with 1,000 tire packs made up of 25,000 tires. But did you know that each driver who completes the Toyota/Save Mart 350 will make 1,100 turns during the race?

    Kyle Larson heads to Sonoma as the points leader after his win last week at Michigan, giving him two victories this year. He has the series fifth-best driver rating (90.0) at the track with a best finish of 12th place last year. But did you know that he is one of nine drivers who has secured a spot in the playoffs with wins?

    The only way any of them would fail to make the playoffs is if there are more new winners than spots left in the 16-driver field. As it now stands, Jimmie Johnson (3), Brad Keselowski (2), Martin Truex Jr. (2), Ryan Blaney, Kurt Busch, Austin Dillon, Ryan Newman and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will almost certainly join Larson as participants in the playoffs.

    Rounding out the top five at Sonoma are Kurt Busch (107.8), with the series-best driver rating, followed by Johnson (99.9), Clint Bowyer (90.2) and Kyle Busch (90.1)

    Kyle Busch and Bowyer are both winless this season but did you know they are among six active drivers with Sonoma victories? Kyle Busch has won twice (2008, 2015) while Clint Bowyer (2012), Kurt Busch (2011), Jimmie Johnson (2010), Kasey Kahne (2009) and Truex (2013) each have one win.

    One more interesting statistic — In his final trip to Sonoma as a full-time Cup Series driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr. may not be anyone’s favorite to win. But did you know that he leads all drivers with a 7.0 average finish in the last three races at Sonoma?

    Qualifying will be crucial this weekend as the pole position is the most proficient starting position. It has produced more wins than any other position, with five, while the second starting position has produced three wins. But did you know that Juan Pablo Montoya won from the deepest in the field in 2007 after starting in 32nd place?

    The on-track action begins Friday afternoon with two practices while Coors Light Pole qualifying will be held on Saturday at 2:45 p.m. ET. Be sure to tune into The Toyota/Save Mart 350 Sunday at 3 p.m. on FS1 for the 16th race of the season. In the meantime, check out the video below as we remember Tony Stewart’s last trip to victory lane.

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • NASCAR Racing Schedule for Sonoma and Iowa

    NASCAR Racing Schedule for Sonoma and Iowa

    The NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series travels to Sonoma Raceway this weekend while the XFINITY Series and the Camping World Truck Series head to Iowa Speedway. There are 38 cars on the entry list for the Cup Series Toyota / Save Mart 350. Please check below for the complete schedule of events. All times are Eastern.

    Friday, June 23:

    On Track – Sonoma Raceway:
    3-4:55 p.m.: Cup Series First Practice – FS1 (Canada: TSN 2)
    6:30-7:55 p.m.: Cup Series Final Practice – FS1 (Canada: TSN GO)

    On Track – Iowa Speedway:
    10 a.m.-11:25 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series First Practice – FS1
    12:15-1:15 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Final Practice – FS1
    2-2:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series First Practice – FS1 (Canada: TSN GO)
    5-5:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series Final Practice – FS1 (Canada: TSN GO)
    6:05 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying
    8:30 p.m.: Camping World Series M&M’s 200 presented by Casey’s General Store (200 laps, 175 miles) – FS1

    Garage Cam: (Watch live)
    2:30 p.m.: Cup Series

    Press Conferences: (Watch live)
    10:30 a.m.: Alon Day (No. 23 Earthwater Toyota)
    11 a.m.: Clint Bowyer (No. 14 Cars 3 Ford)
    11:15 a.m.: Kyle Larson (No. 42 Target Chevrolet)
    2:15 p.m.:  Martin Truex Jr. (No. 78 Furniture Row/Denver Mattress Toyota)
    2:30 p.m.: Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 88 Axalta Chevrolet)

    Saturday, June 24:

    On Track – Sonoma Raceway:
    2:45 p.m.: Cup Series Coors Light Qualifying – FS1 (Canada; TSN 5)

    On Track – Iowa Speedway:
    6:15 p.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Qualifying – Airs taped delayed at 7 p.m. on FS1 (Canada: TSN GO)
    8:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series American Ethanol E15 250 presented by Enogen (250 laps, 218.75 miles) – FS1 (Canada: TSN 2)

    Sunday, June 25

    On Track – Sonoma Raceway:
    3 p.m.: Cup Series Toyota/Save Mart 350 (110 laps, 218.9 miles) – FS1 (Canada; TSN 2)

    Press Conferences: (Watch live)
    9 a.m.: Cristela Alonzo (Grand Marshal) and John Lasseter (Official Pace Car Driver)

    Race Details:

    NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
    Race: M&M’s 200 presented by Casey’s General Store – Iowa Speedway
    Date: Friday, June 23
    Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
    TV: FS1, 8 p.m. ET
    Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Distance: 175 miles (200 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 60), Stage 2 (Ends on lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on lap 200)

    NASCAR XFINITY Series
    Race: American Ethanol E15 250 presented by Enogen – Iowa Speedway
    Date: Saturday, June 24
    Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
    TV: FS1, 8 p.m. ET
    Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Distance: 218.75 miles (250 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 60), Stage 2 (Ends on lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on lap 250)

    Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
    Race: Toyota/Save Mart 350
    Place: Sonoma Raceway
    Date: Sunday, June 25
    Time: 3 p.m. ET
    TV: FS1, 1:30 p.m. ET
    Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
    Distance: 218.9 miles (110 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on lap 25), Stage 2 (Ends on lap 50), Final Stage (Ends on lap 110)

    Complete TV Schedule

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Alon Day Making His Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Debut at Sonoma with Bk Racing, Earthwater Limited

    Alon Day Making His Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series Debut at Sonoma with Bk Racing, Earthwater Limited

    Huntersville, N.C. (June 16, 2017) – Alon Day will become the first driver from Israel to ever compete in NASCAR’s top series next weekend in the Toyota/Save Mart 350 driving the BK Racing No. 23 EarthWater Limited Toyota Camry.

    Day, a 25-year-old native of Tel Aviv, Israel, was named Israel’s 2016 “Athlete of the Year.” As a result of his outstanding achievements in NASCAR’s Euro Series, Day has the unique distinction of being the first stock car driver from outside of North America to be selected for the NASCAR NEXT program, an initiative to feature NASCAR’s future stars.

    Day comes to Sonoma upon the heels of being crowned “King of Brands Hatch”, as a result of last week’s victory in the NASCAR Whelen Euro race in England. Day intends to compete for the 2017 NASCAR Euro Series Championship with plans to race again in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen, as well as select races in the NASCAR XFINITY Series and Camping World Truck Series the remainder of the 2017 season.

    EarthWater Limited, the official water provider of BK Racing, will be on board Day’s Toyota at Sonoma Raceway. EarthWater was first introduced to NASCAR earlier this season when they were on board the BK Racing Toyotas for the Martinsville, Texas, and Charlotte races.

    “I’m very excited to make my debut in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series next week in Sonoma,” said Day. “Being the first Israeli who is going to race in NASCAR’s highest Series is a dream come true. I must thank BK Racing, EarthWater Limited, as well as Hall of Famer Franco Harris, Super Donut, and Silversport for giving me this awesome opportunity.”

    “We’re excited to partner with BK Racing for this groundbreaking moment in NASCAR’s history which features an amazing driver who will be competing at the highest level with world class drivers,” said EarthWater President, Cash Riley Jr. “With increasingly number of issues around dehydration in all sports, especially during the summer, we are honored to offer a solution and bring awareness to a life-threatening issue. We’re looking forward to the celebration of diversity at Sonoma and the continued expansion of our global brand.”

    “I like giving new drivers an opportunity, and Alon is a great road course driver,” said Team Owner, Ron Devine. “He has been successful in other series around the world and deserves a shot in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.”

    About EarthWater Limited
    EarthWater Limited (www.earthwater.com) is a health and wellness company that manufactures all-natural products that boost your body’s immunity, including beverages, liquid concentrates, and gummies under the brands FulHum (www.drinkfulhum.com) and Zenful (www.drinkzenful.com), which are 100% natural, proprietary blends of organic Fulvic and Humic complexes. All EarthWater products are available online through Amazon. For more information, email info@earthwater.com.

     

  • Stewart’s Emotional Sonoma Victory One Of NASCAR’s Defining Wins

    Stewart’s Emotional Sonoma Victory One Of NASCAR’s Defining Wins

    Once Tony Stewart broke his leg in a Sprint Car crash in 2013, it was easy to write him off in the long scheme of things. He had only won once that season with five top-fives and eight top-10s.  In 2014 he was winless with three top-fives and seven top-10s. Then 2015 wasn’t any better, with a measly three top-10s. There was no reason to expect anything remotely different out of that No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing team in 2016, which is Stewart’s retirement year.

    So to see Stewart bring the fight to Denny Hamlin on the last corner of the last lap of Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway and emerge victorious in his battered No. 14 Chevy was not only a pleasant surprise, but capped off one of the most emotional roads to recovery this sport has ever seen.

    Stewart has always been strong on the road courses, leading all active drivers with eight wins at Sonoma and Watkins Glen, so his win there isn’t exactly a surprise, especially on the heels of a strong seventh-place run at Michigan. But look at his last three finishes there beginning in 2013: 28th, 19th, and 12th. It was definitely his worst streak at Sonoma since his first start in 1999, where he finished 15th after starting second.

    But take some of the other things into consideration. In 2013 he struggled mightily, worse than he ever had, behind the wheel of a Sprint Cup car. He did win at Dover in June, but that was due to good pit strategy. He wasn’t consistent, he wasn’t near the front, and he wasn’t doing so well. That carried on into 2014 and 2015, and what was once a question of when Stewart would win again became a question of if he would win again. Top-10s alone were cause for celebration among the Stewart supporters.

    Then came Michigan two weeks ago, and Stewart put on a performance that was so strong and unexpected that many were wondering if he had turned the corner with his No. 14 and rookie Crew Chief Mike Bugarewicz. Then comes a 10th-place qualifying effort at Sonoma, followed by a determined performance by Stewart, where he led 22 laps and had no qualms door-slamming Hamlin out of the way on the way to victory.

    Is this a championship statement? Not likely. Even though SHR has now won three times in 2016, they’re still being overshadowed by the Toyotas of Joe Gibbs Racing. On top of that, even though it’s a given that Stewart will claim that 30th-place in points and claim his Chase spot come Richmond, it’s still too early to say if he’ll even contend for the championship. It would be nice, granted, but one win does not a championship run make.

    The next race is Daytona, where Stewart has multiple wins in the July event. Daytona is also a crapshoot when it comes to winners and losers. Stewart is a strong superspeedway racer and could very well nail a top-five or a top-10 easily. He’s got a lot of good tracks coming up and he will be the one to watch in the next two months before the Chase starts.

    Regardless of Chase status, it’s evident that the questions of whether or not Stewart has lost his edge can now stop. Drivers like Stewart, people like Stewart, never really lose that edge, that will to win. It may have been subdued over the last three years, but it never left Stewart completely. In the final corner of the final lap at Sonoma, it was made clear that that the will to win was stronger than ever. Stewart wanted to win at all costs and with the amount of crew members and peers including SHR drivers Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch as well as runner-up Hamlin coming up to congratulate him on his way to Victory Lane, it was obvious no one could blame him.