Two-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart secured his first win of the year and the No. 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevrolet's crew chief, Darian Grubb, was selected as the NASCAR MOOG Problem Solver of the Race in the Emory Healthcare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Sponsored by Federal-Mogul Corporation, the MOOG Problem Solver of the Race Award is presented to the crew chief whose car posts the largest increase in average lap speed from the first half to the second half of the event while finishing on the lead lap. Stewart and the No. 14 Chevrolet posted a 0.595-second-per-lap improvement on Atlanta's 1.54-mile quad-oval track.
Stewart's win came in convincing fashion, with the No. 14 car's MOOG- equipped chassis delivering what the driver described as the best handling he has experienced all year. The driver used this advantage to capture the lead after a restart on lap 301 and then power away from the field. He beat Carl Edwards to the checkered flag by 1.316 seconds.
The victory clinched Stewart's spot in the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup championship finale, which begins in two weeks at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Grubb's MOOG Problem Solver of the Race Award is his second of the year, putting him in a four-way tie for second place in the battle for the season-ending MOOG Problem Solver of the Year Award. Shane Wilson, crew chief of the No. 33 Chevrolet driven by Clint Bowyer, leads the pack with three MOOG Award wins in 2010.
"We've got seven crew chiefs with a legitimate shot at MOOG Problem Solver of the Year honors," says Federal-Mogul Motorsports Director Tim Nelson. "This is one of the most challenging and prestigious awards in Cup racing because there are so many variables at play, both in the pits and on the track, during every race. The only constant is the fact that each of these crew chiefs and drivers has chosen MOOG chassis parts for their car."
For additional information, visit www.moogproblemsolver.com.
