Until Sunday, Stewart had not won a NASCAR Sprint Cup race since June 2, 2013, at Dover International Speedway.
Stewart, who has won at 21 different Sprint Cup tracks, has 49 career victories. That ranks him 13th in Sprint Cup history.
Here are 7 of Tony Stewart’s biggest NASCAR Sprint Cup wins (in chronological order):
1. Sept. 11, 1999 at Richmond International Raceway: Stewart's first victory came 25 races into his rookie season driving the No. 20 Home Depot for owner Joe Gibbs. Stewart, 28, led 333 of the 400 laps and held off Bobby Labonte by 1.115 seconds. "Oh, man. I wish I knew what to say," Stewart said. "I mean, you plan all your life for something like this, and I don't know. This is the first time I've been speechless. Everybody knows I know how to talk enough."
2. July 2, 2005 at Daytona International Speedway: It wasn't the Daytona 500 – the coveted victory that eluded Stewart in his career – but any win at Daytona is worthy celebrating. Stewart did so for the first of four times in 2005. He led 151 of 160 laps to break Cale Yarborough's record (142 in 1968) for the summer race at DIS. The race ended at 1:42 a.m. after a two-hour rain delay. "Man, I'm nocturnal. I'm an old sprint car and midget car racer, and at this time of night, we're usually just loading up on our trailers and headed for the Waffle House anyway," Stewart quipped.
3. Aug. 7, 2005 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway: Stewart kissed the bricks for the first time, winning the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard after holding off Kasey Kahne by 0.794 seconds at the finish. Stewart, who grew up in Columbus, Ind., climbed the catchfence with his crew to celebrate the first of his two home-state wins. He led 44 of the 160 laps, including the final 11 laps after taking the lead from Kahne. "I wish I could put into words," Stewart said. "Today's been my entire life."
4. July 29, 2007 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway: This one was classic Tony Stewart. He lost the lead on a restart to good friend Kevin Harvick with 20 laps to go. Stewart, who led a race-high 66 laps, chased down Harvick and said over his radio: "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty. Come get you some of this." The two were side-by-side during the closing laps, but Stewart wasn't going to be denied at Indy. How certain was Stewart, who led the final 10 laps? With about six laps to go and running out front at 200 mph, he was drinking from a water bottle with both hands off the wheel.
5. Oct. 5, 2008 at Talladega Superspeedway: Stewart's first win at 'Dega – which ended a 43-race winless streak – came with controversy after battling Regan Smith to the finish. Smith beat Stewart to the finish by passing low under the yellow line – a NASCAR no-no – and race officials awarded Stewart the win. Smith argued Stewart forced him below the line attempting to block, but the win stood for Stewart. "You're darn right I did," Stewart said of trying to block Smith. "I've lost Daytona 500s, I've lost races here at Talladega because somebody blocked. That's the name of the game. There's always been people blocking. The nice thing is I was actually on the right end of it this time." In 2001, Stewart was bumped from sixth to 26th after NASCAR ruled he passed under the yellow line at Daytona's summer race. After finding out, he knocked a tape recorder out of a reporter's hands and kicked it under a hauler. He was also fined $10,000 for attempting to confront a NASCAR official. This was also the last win for Stewart driving for Joe Gibbs.
6. June 7, 2009 at Pocono Raceway: Stewart was fuming after this one, too. But for a different reason. Stewart won his first points race as team owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, gambling his No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice had enough fuel to hold off Carl Edwards. Stewart led 39 of the 200 laps. He went the final 41 laps – leading the final 37 – without a pit stop to become the first owner/driver since Ricky Rudd (Martinsville, 1998) to win a Sprint Cup points race. "There will be a banner hanging in the shop that marks this day and time in history for the organization," Stewart said. "But you can't sit on it too long."
7. Nov. 20, 2011 at Homestead-Miami Speedway: Stewart's talents shined the brightest on a rainy day in Florida. He came from the back of the pack twice to win a winner-take-all showdown with Carl Edwards, who finished second. Both drivers finished the race tied in points, but Stewart was awarded his third Sprint Cup championship on a tie-breaker. Stewart's five wins – all coming in the 10-race Chase for the championship – trumped Edward's one win during the regular season. Stewart led 65 of the 267 laps. The victory snapped Jimmie Johnson's streak of five Cup titles and helped Stewart become the first owner/driver to win the title since Alan Kulwicki in 1992. "I feel like I passed half the state of Florida; 118 cars is a lot of cars to pass in one race," Stewart said. "To do it under the circumstances and pressure we had, I'm very, very proud of that. I can't even remember how many races I've won, but I would have to say under this set of circumstances I've got to believe one of the greatest races of my career."
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