No. 20 Pit Crew wins at The Glen

Stewart's Pit Crew Takes McDonald's/POWERade Victory at Watkins Glen

It was a double win for the No. 20 Home Depot/Joe Gibbs Racing Team Sunday at Watkins Glen International. Not only did driver Tony Stewart capture the win on the 2.45-mile road course, but his pit crew also came away with a victory -- taking top honors and $20,000 in the weekly McDonald's Drive- Thru Pit Championship fueled by POWERade.

It was the third victory of the season for Stewart's crew, which has claimed $60,000 in prize money and is in position to contend for the $200,000 season champion's bonus.

In the McDonald's/POWERade pit crew standings -- Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s crew regained the No. 1 spot with 800 points, six more than the second place crew for Elliott Sadler. Stewart's crew sits in third with 774 points.

Earnhardt's crew placed sixth at Watkins Glen and earned 38 standing points. Sadler's crew, which held the points lead the past two weeks, picked up 27 points with a 17th-place finish.

Stewart's Home Depot Chevrolet spent the least amount of time on the Watkins Glen pit road -- 77.743 seconds. Coming in second was Kurt Busch's No. 97 IRWIN Ford with a time of 89.704 seconds. Third was Casey Mears' No. 41 Target Dodge at 90.476.

"These guys have never given up on me no matter what has happened. I'm never giving up on them," said Stewart, who battled severe stomach cramps for much of the 90-lap race. "With a car like we had at Watkins Glen and the pit stops my guys gave me, I wasn't going to take a win away from those guys knowing we had a car capable of winning the race."

Stewart's over-the-wall crew consists of: Chuck White (jackman), Tom Dean (front-tire carrier), Mike Lingerfelt (front-tire changer), Jay Barry (rear- tire carrier), Todd Foster (rear-tire changer), Jeff "Gooch" Patterson (gas man) and Brian Larson (catch can). The team's crew chief is Greg Zipadelli and the pit stop coordinator is Paul Alepa.

<pre> Top 10 Pit Crews in Sunday's (Aug. 15) SIRIUS at The Glen at Watkins Glen International

                               Time                   Car#      Points
1.  Tony Stewart Team          77.743 seconds         20         43
2.  Kurt Busch Team            89.704    "            97         42
3.  Casey Mears Team           90.476    "            41         41
4.  Joe Nemechek Team          90.722    "            01         40
5.  Robby Gordon Team          108.426   "            31         39
6.  Dale Earnhardt Jr. Team    111.973   "             8         38
7.  Kevin Harvick Team         115.889   "            29         37
8.  Richard Childress Racing   125.855   "            30         36
9.  Bobby Labonte Team         129.641   "            18         35
10. Ricky Rudd Team            134.415   "            21         34

2004 Winners of The McDonald's Drive-Thru Pit Championship fueled by POWERade:

Daytona (2/15)          Tony Stewart Team
Rockingham (2/22)       Dale Earnhardt Jr. Team
Las Vegas (3/7)         Kurt Busch Team
Atlanta (3/14)          Robby Gordon Team
Darlington (3/21)       Greg Biffle Team
Bristol (3/28)          Sterling Marlin Team
Texas (4/4)             Michael Waltrip Team
Martinsville (4/18)     Kurt Busch Team
Talladega (4/25)        Robby Gordon Team
California (5/2)        Robby Gordon Team
Richmond (5/15)         Dale Earnhardt Jr. Team
Charlotte (May 30)      Jamie McMurray Team
Dover (6/6)             Tony Stewart Team
Pocono (6/13)           Casey Mears Team
Michigan (6/20)         Elliott Sadler Team
Sonoma (6/27)           Elliott Sadler Team
Daytona (7/3)           Michael Waltrip Team
Chicago (7/11)          Elliott Sadler Team
N. Hampshire (7/25)     Kurt Busch Team
Pocono (8/1)            Greg Biffle Team
Indianapolis (8/8)      Elliott Sadler Team
Watkins Glen (8/15)     Tony Stewart Team

Point Standings for NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Teams Competing in The McDonald's Drive-Thru Pit Championship fueled by POWERADE: Following Watkins Glen (8/15); pit crew wins in parentheses

Pos.  Car#  Pit Crew of                         Points  Prize Money
1      8    Dale Earnhardt Jr. Team (2)         800     40,000
2     38    Elliott Sadler Team (4)             794     80,000
3     20    Tony Stewart Team (3)               774     60,000
4     29    Kevin Harvick Team                  760
5     97    Kurt Busch Team (3)                 755     60,000
6     15    Michael Waltrip Team (2)            722     40,000
T-7   18    Bobby Labonte Team                  718
T-7   88    Dale Jarrett Team                   718
9     41    Casey Mears Team (1)                717     20,000
10    31    Robby Gordon Team (3)               709     60,000
11    30    Richard Childress Racing Team       708
12    42    Jamie McMurray Team (1)             706     20,000
13    01    Joe Nemechek Team                   696
14    99    Jeff Burton Team                    687
15    40    Sterling Marlin Team (1)            684     20,000
16    21    Ricky Rudd Team                     680
17    16    Greg Biffle Team (2)                664     40,000
18    49    Ken Schrader Team                   638
19    43    Jeff Green Team                     631
20     0    Ward Burton Team                    610
21    45    Kyle Petty Team                     598
22    50    Arnold Motorsports                  536
23    09    James Finch Team (owner)            353
24   198    Todd Bodine Team                    315
25    02    Hermie Sadler Team                  257
26    89    Morgan Shepherd Team                246
27    72    Kirk Shelmerdine Team               175
28     1    DEI Team                            168  `
29   280    Andy Hillenburg Team                133
30    91    Bill Elliott Team                    88
31   251    Kevin Lepage Team                    86
32   194    Stanton Barrett Team                 80
33    14    Larry Foyt Team                      72
34   172    Ted Christopher                      55
35   133    Kerry Earnhardt Team                 54
36     7    Jim Smith Team (owner)               48
37    00    Kenny Wallace Team                   42

-mcdonalds-