INSIDE TRACK: Coke Zero 400 Review - WTRF 7 News Sports Weather - Wheeling Steubenville

INSIDE TRACK: Coke Zero 400 Review

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By Bob Westfall, Assignments Editor - email
Tom Pennington/Getty Images for NASCAR Tom Pennington/Getty Images for NASCAR
DAYTONA BEACH, Fl -

It was another race where the dominant car, or in this case cars, didn't take the checkered flag.   Roush Fenway Racing's Matt Kenseth and Greg Biffle lead four times for a total of 124 of the 160 laps, but they could stick together to beat Tony Stewart at the line.  Stewart showed his future hall of fame driving skill by side drafting the RFR teammates to separate them and pull away for his fourth win in the last eight July races at Daytona.  

But overcoming Kenseth and Biffle was job one for Stewart.  "We just had to try to separate the 17 and 16 there, and once we got them pulled apart, I think Matt tried to reconnect with Greg, and we carried enough momentum to get back around in front of him and get down on that bottom line.  I tried to back up to Matt to make sure they didn't get a huge run on us.  They were coming on the outside in 3 and 4 and the last wreck happened there, we were just fortunate enough to be leading still."

With that side-draft, Stewart unhooked the teammates and pulled ahead while Kenseth waited for Biffle.  "Happy to get third but on the other hand, I am incredibly disappointed.  My team kind of deserved to be down there holding the hardware and I kind of let them down.  But overall, we had a really fast car, we had a pretty good race, made our way back to the front after the pit road thing and were in contention, just didn't get it done that last lap," said Kenseth.

Richard Childress Racing's Jeff Burton was thrilled with this finish, "Well, certainly feels good to have a good finish.  We've had a miserable year, and to come -- to get out of Daytona with a second place finish, we ought to be happy.  We finished fifth here in the 500 and second tonight, so two top 5s down here is probably more than I can expect with all the wrecks and stuff."

Burton came home second and Series leader Kenseth third, with Joey Logano and Ryan Newman completing the top five.  Kenseth's lead in the standings grew to 25 points over Dale Earnhardt Jr., who was collected in the last-lap crash and finished 15. Biffle is third, 44 points behind Kenseth.