While Tony Stewart could do little with veteran Mark Martin this weekend in Phoenix, the new owner/driver proved he is on the brink of earning that first Cup Series win in his own equipment.

The driver of the No. 14 Old Spice/Office Depot Chevrolet started the day from the sixth-spot and settled into the top-5 for much of the evening. Leading a total of nineteen laps, Stewart got his shot at the win after Dale Earnhardt Jr. brought out the final caution of the event.

Erasing a four-second deficit to Martin, the final yellow allowed Stewart and the other leaders to hit pit road for the final time. The No. 14 Chevrolet restarted the race third, with teammate Ryan Newman - who did not pit - out front and Martin in second.

As Newman quickly backslid on old tires, Martin continued to do what he had done all night - pull away. Stewart was able to stay in touch with the 50-year-old, but was unable to do anything with Martin as he scored his first victory since 2005.

“I’m just happy for everybody from Office Depot, Old Spice and Haas Automation that believed in me when I had this idea of starting this deal last year,” Stewart said. “We’re getting there, man. I’m telling you, we’re so close. We’re going to get us a win here soon.  We’re not going to let our fans down.”

Coming home second, Stewart earned his best finish as an owner/driver, his third straight top-5 finish and fifth top-10 of 2009. With a lot of questions surrounding the fate of this team coming into the season, Stewart’s consistent performances have proved this team will win and it should happen soon.

“This is the best start to the season that I’ve ever had in my career,” Stewart went on to say. “The last three weeks have just been amazing. I mean, it’s been so much fun.  We’ve been in contention. We’ve led laps.  We’re doing everything right.  It’s just a matter of time. We are consistent now and that’s the way you’ve got to be. We’re just clicking them off one at a time here. I don’t think any of us would have predicted we would be in the top-five in points.”

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