Two weeks into the season and the new Stewart-Haas Racing has turned a few heads and frustrated others at the same time. Owner/driver Tony Stewart has come out of the box hot in his inaugural season as a car owner and is one of only three drivers to finish in the top-10 in the first two races of the 2009 season - Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch are the other two.

"To come out of California, which is not one of my best tracks, with another top-10, I think that's a pretty strong statement," Stewart argued. "This is still a very young team in terms of us working together. To have the results we've had so far is very encouraging. There's still a lot of racing in front of us, but it's important to get off to a good start. So far, we've done that, but we need to keep doing it this weekend at Las Vegas. We've been solid for two straight weeks. Now, our focus is on Las Vegas, and making sure we stay strong for three straight weeks."

Making his eleventh Cup Series start at the 1.5-mile track, Stewart will be going after not only his first win as a driver/owner, but also at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, one of only three tracks Stewart has yet to score a victory at. The other are last weekend's Auto Club Speedway and the "Lady In Black," the Darlington Raceway .

While Stewart has fared well during the opening stages of the 2009 season, teammate Ryan Newman has struggled thanks mostly to bad luck. Thanks to a disappointing Speedweeks and a mediocre run in Fontana, Newman and his team currently find themselves in the 33rd spot in points.

"It has definitely been an interesting couple of weeks for the team," the 2008 Daytona 500 winner admitted. "You want to sit back and just say 'What else?' But you have to keep on working through it. Luck is a big part of racing. You can have the best car at the track all day, have a huge lead and have some freak issue occur one corner from the end of the race - and that's it. You went from the first car to the last car. Unfortunately, we've been on the bad luck side of things for the last two races. It isn't the first time I've had bad luck. I'm just ready for my luck to change."

What a better place to find some luck than Las Vegas, Nevada. The 'Rocket Man' has one pole at the 1.5-mile track, along with one top-5 and four top-10s. A little help from 'Lady Luck' might give this team solid run it needs this weekend at Las Vegas. If Newman and his team are able to avoid issues and contend for the race, and Stewart maintains his promising start, this team will send a message that they will be a sure threat this coming season.

"These early races teach you very quickly where your program is compared to the competition," Stewart explained. "If your cars are good, you'll run well at California, Vegas, Atlanta, Texas and so on. Everybody wants to know where they stack up and shake up right now. If you can get off to a good start, it shows that your program is really where it needs to be. This is a huge week."

Be sure to check back all this weekend for all of your news and results from the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.