Stewart wins at Daytona after last-lap crash

2009-07-05 06:35:03 -

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida (AP) - Tony Stewart sent Kyle Busch into a spectacular last-lap crash that triggered a pile-up, and went on to claim a tarnished victory in Saturday's NASCAR Sprint Cup event at Daytona International Speedway.
Stewart led lap after lap, using a flawless pit-lane performance to inch closer to his second win as owner of his race team, before Busch overtook him before the final lap to take the lead.
Stewart chased him down and a slight tap on the bumper sent Busch drifting up the track before sliding back down to maintain the lead. Busch then tried to slide in front of Stewart to block, and Stewart hooked Busch's right corner to send Busch sailing into the wall.
It triggered a multiple crash behind them, but Stewart sailed through for his second points win of the season.
«I went where I had to go, and he went where he had to go,» Stewart said. «You hate seeing a guy that's been up front all day, especially a guy that's helped me the whole race, wreck like that. You're kind of forced in that position. But I made my move to the outside and he went to block us and we were already there.
«It still doesn't mean you like it. That's not the way to win these things. If I did something wrong, I'm sorry.
It was another wild finish for NASCAR, which is still smarting from April's frightening crash at Talladega Superspeedway, where Carl Edwards went airborne into the fence on the final lap in a similar incident.
«That's not the way I wanted to do it,» said Stewart, who won the summer Daytona race for the third time in five years.
It was a horrendous wreck for Busch, who climbed from his car apparently unscathed but had to be forced by four NASCAR officials into a waiting safety vehicle. He finished 14th and refused to comment after the race.
Team owner Joe Gibbs briefly checked on Busch, who needed intravenous fluids after driving a 70-minute stint in stifling heat earlier Saturday in his Grand-Am Series debut. Gibbs said Busch had a headache, and would be monitored overnight for precautionary reasons.
«It's a tough place to race,» Gibbs said. «I felt like he gave it everything he could. I'm proud of him.
Jimmie Johnson was second, followed by Denny Hamlin, Busch's teammate. Edwards was fourth, and Kurt Busch finished fifth.
Marcos Ambrose was sixth, followed by Brian Vickers, who came back from an accident, and Daytona 500 winner Matt Kenseth. Juan Pablo Montoya rallied from a lap down to finish ninth, and Elliott Sadler rounded out the top 10.