NASCAR NOTEBOOK From the Brickyard 400

Questionable call eliminates Stewart: Tony Stewart will forever have to wonder if a questionable pit call cost him a victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Stewart dominated the race, leading 60 laps only to make two late pit stops to change his tires and take himself out of contention for the victory. He finished a disappointing 12th -- never even able to challenge winner Kevin Harvick. Stewart, an Indiana native who badly wants a win on his home track, left on a golf cart, too distraught to talk. As he passed through Gasoline Alley, with people screaming at him wondering what happened, Stewart could only shrug. "Beats me, ask the crew. They might know something," he said. The pit calls will certainly be debated among his team, which didn't try to mask its devastation after the race. "It's heartbreaking and it certainly hurts," car owner Joe Gibbs said. "I think just like people have empathy for a great quarterback who never wins the Super Bowl, there's empathy for Tony having a tough time winning at the place he really wants to win." Knowing he didn't have enough gas to finish the race, he ducked off the track for what was supposed to be his final pit stop with 29 laps to go. But instead of taking fuel only, his crew changed the tires on the right side of the No. 20 Chevrolet and adjusted the pressure on the left side. Back in traffic and unable to maneuver his way back up to the front, he blamed his tires and told the crew the car was handling so bad it could "knock down the fence." So when caution came out eight laps later, the team made the questionable decision to pit again under caution and change the left side tires. It put him deep in a pack of traffic and he couldn't break free.
Questionable call eliminates Stewart: Tony Stewart will forever have to wonder if a questionable pit call cost him a victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Stewart dominated the race, leading 60 laps only to make two late pit stops to change his tires and take himself out of contention for the victory. He finished a disappointing 12th -- never even able to challenge winner Kevin Harvick. Stewart, an Indiana native who badly wants a win on his home track, left on a golf cart, too distraught to talk. As he passed through Gasoline Alley, with people screaming at him wondering what happened, Stewart could only shrug. "Beats me, ask the crew. They might know something," he said. The pit calls will certainly be debated among his team, which didn't try to mask its devastation after the race. "It's heartbreaking and it certainly hurts," car owner Joe Gibbs said. "I think just like people have empathy for a great quarterback who never wins the Super Bowl, there's empathy for Tony having a tough time winning at the place he really wants to win." Knowing he didn't have enough gas to finish the race, he ducked off the track for what was supposed to be his final pit stop with 29 laps to go. But instead of taking fuel only, his crew changed the tires on the right side of the No. 20 Chevrolet and adjusted the pressure on the left side. Back in traffic and unable to maneuver his way back up to the front, he blamed his tires and told the crew the car was handling so bad it could "knock down the fence." So when caution came out eight laps later, the team made the questionable decision to pit again under caution and change the left side tires. It put him deep in a pack of traffic and he couldn't break free.