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LOUDON, N.H. -- Tony Stewart, who fell out of the lead when he ran out of gas here a year ago, went to the front when race leader Clint Bowyer, last year's benefactor of Stewart's hard luck, ran out of gas with two laps to go. It enabled Stewart to win back-to-back races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship with his triumph in the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Bowyer wound up finishing 26th, the first driver one lap down.
``I know exactly how he feels,'' Stewart said of Bowyer. ``It's a tough way to win it.''
Stewart vaulted into the Chase points lead after his victory in Monday's rain-delayed Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway to become the second driver in Chase history to win the first two events of the 10-race playoff.
The victory enabled Stewart's race team, Stewart-Haas Racing, to sweep the NASCAR events at NHMS after Ryan Newman won the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 in July.
Stewart finished ahead of runner-up Brad Keselowski and third-place finisher Greg Biffle, fourth-place Jeff Gordon and fifth-place Brian Vickers.
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Ten laps to go. Bowyer stays in the lead.
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Kahne pits for right-side tires and fuel. Drops from 5th to 23d, one lap down.
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Twenty-five to go. Bowyer still in the lead.
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Bowyer, it appears, is trying to stretch out his fuel to the finish. Stewart and Gordon have already pitted and are good to go to the finish. The race may come down to them if Bowyer runs out. Gordon has had to drop back to fifth after crew chief Alan Gustafson informed him of a pit road snafu with the gas can exchange that left him a little shy of fuel. So now he is trying to save gas as well.
The top 5: 1. Bowyer, 2. Stewart, 3. Kahne, 4. Biffle, 5. Gordon.
Lap 250 of 300
Fifty laps to go. Clint Bowyer is the leader, but Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon are hard on his bumper.
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Kasey Kahne goes to the lead after Busch pits for 4 tires and fuel on Lap 246. Busch drops back to 26th, one-lap down.
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Kurt Busch, whose car failed pre-race inspection, is now in the lead.
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Earnhardt has flat tire, drops from sixth to 29th when he pits for a right front tire and fuel.
Race leader Gordon also pits for tires and fuel on Lap 230. He drops back to 19th.
Brad Keselowski, who inherited the lead, also pitted under green on Lap 231. He falls back to 21st.
Brian Vickers has cycled to the front as the race leader on Lap 235.
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Gordon has now led 49 laps in this race. Strong showing by the 24 after they stumbled out of the blocks in the Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway and finished 24th in the rain-delayed Geico 400 last Monday.
Lap 178 of 300, Restart
