As Stewart raced Matt Kenseth hard for the lead in the closing laps of Saturday night’s Sprint All-Star Race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway (Concord, N.C.), Stewart was surprised at what he saw. Kenseth had left an opening for Stewart on the bottom of the track and Stewart didn’t hesitate. The driver of the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet pushed by Kenseth and took the lead with two laps to go. Once the pass was complete Stewart scampered away from Kenseth and collected his first win as an owner and driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, crossing the finish line .971 seconds ahead of Kenseth.

"I can't believe he gave me the bottom,” Stewart said. “I just cannot believe he gave me the bottom. But I'll take it. Matt (Kenseth) is a guy you can trust. We got to second there, got by the No. 18 [Kyle Busch] and I thought all right, we have a shot at this thing.

“We weren't that good until the last run. Darian Grubb (crew chief), I mean he made some awesome calls there at the end to get us where I could drive that thing the way I could. Man it was fast. I can promise you I am going to enjoy this until about Monday.”

Cars equipped with WIX Filters have won four of the 11 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points races this season and both the Budweiser Shootout and Sprint All-Star Race.

The victory was Stewart’s first in the all-star race and his best finish since he placed second in 1999 as a Raybestos® Rookie. He became the second owner-driver to win the special event, joining Geoffrey Bodine who captured the event in 1994.

After Stewart won the race, he was greeted by a huge ovation by the near capacity crowd in the Turn 2 grandstand at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. The ovation was left a lasting impression on the driver and car owner, who also thanked Rick Hendrick for his assistance.

“I've got to thank our fans,” Stewart said. “Man, when I got out over there in (Turn) 2 the response from this crowd was awesome. They've been behind us all year. Rick Hendrick was on the phone with me already. We couldn't do it without Rick Hendrick and his engine and chassis department.”

Stewart’s teammate, Ryan Newman, nearly stole the show. Newman rebound from a broken shock early in the race to battle Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch for the lead during the final 10-lap dash to the finish. The group raced three-wide for the lead off Turn 4 on lap 92 when they ran out of room. The cars bounced off each other, damaging Newman’s car and sending Gordon for a long spin then into the outside wall on the frontstretch. Newman and Gordon were both sidelined by the accident.

Stewart said after the race, acknowledging how strong Newman’s Chevrolet.

"It should have been Ryan Newman here first,” Stewart said.

Stewart averaged 99.137 mph in a race that took one hour, 30 minutes and 47 seconds to complete. There were seven lead changes among five drivers and seven cautions slowed the race for three laps.

Since 1939, WIX® Filters has been an innovator in filtration products. WIX designs, manufactures and distributes products for automotive, diesel, agricultural, industrial and specialty filter markets. Its product line includes oil, air, cabin interior, fuel, coolant, transmission and hydraulic filters for automobiles, trucks and off-road equipment. WIX, a member of the Affinia family of brands, is the number one filter in NASCAR and an exclusive NASCAR Performance Product. Its NASCAR relationship also includes the WIX Filters Lap Leader Award, which recognizes the drivers leading the most laps in each race. For more information, visit www.wixfilters.com.

Affinia Group Inc. is a global leader in the on and off-highway replacement products and service industry. In North America the Affinia family of brands includes WIX® Filters, Raybestos®, AIMCO® and BrakePro® brake products, and McQuay-Norris® and Raybestos™ Chassis parts. South American and European brands include Nakata®, Filtron®, Urba® and Quinton Hazell®. For more information, visit www.affiniagroup.com.

*Affinia Group Inc.’s affiliated companies include Brake Parts Inc. WIX Filtration Corp LLC, Affinia Products Corp LLC and other high quality manufacturers of the Affinia family of brands.