A lot of us Tony fans knew it would happen, eventually. We waited for it, betted on it, and held our breath each week but I don’t think any of us were really expecting when and where it did happen.

Of course, that’s just Tony! When he wins, he does it in a BIG way. Saturday night’s race at LMS was no different.

I am not really interested in recapping the race, which I watched twice, but I do want to point out a few highlights before I discuss my feelings and thoughts on Tony’s huge victory.

Sam Hornish Jr. and Jamie McMurray – They put on quite a show in the Sprint Showdown, for sure! I wasn’t even sure Jamie could race his way in but boy did he prove me wrong! And how about that Sam Hornish? He pretty much dominated the second half of the showdown.

Joey Logano – And you thought he didn’t have fans!! I was so happy to see my favorite rookie, Joey, get voted by the fans into the All Star Race. Even better was when he finished 8th place- better than half the field! He really showed everyone what he is made of and proved that he deserves to be where he is. Way to go Joey!

Matt Kenseth – As you probably know, I love Matt! It was awesome to see him up there really contending for the win and putting on a great show. I think most of us wondered what happened to him after his explosive beginning to 2009. Looks like he’s back!

Tony Stewart – Of course. The winner of the race who I don’t think even led a lap until 2 to go! As a matter of fact, according to NASCAR.com, he took final lead on lap 99 of 100. Amazing!!

As a huge Tony Stewart fan since my rookie year, 2004, I have to say that this was probably one of my top three favorite moments. First being Tony’s second championship in 2005 and probably a tie between his first Indy win and his first Talladega win last year.

At first, there were really no tears, just a lot of screaming. The tears came later. It finally sank in- Tony really won! He finally pulled that number 14 Office Depot/Old Spice Chevy into victory lane! When he stood up on that car and held his arms up in the classic victory pose, I lost it.

I admit it, I’ve developed a reputation for getting really emotional over race wins, I just can’t help it. It all started last season. After an overwhelmingly bad start to the 2008 season for my top three (Mark Martin, Tony Stewart, and Greg Biffle), I was pretty frustrated. Then Greg Biffle won Loudon and I pretty much lost it. Then he won Dover.

All the emotions and frustrations of the season, watching your drivers have bad luck, accidents, and get basically cheated out of wins and then to finally have one of my top three (who are all basically tied in my mind) win not just once but twice in a row, it was pretty emotional for me.

Fast forward to Phoenix 2009 and Mark Martin leads the field. I mean he KILLED it that night. When he led the field to the green in the final segment of the race (and I’m getting a little teary eyed right now), I was shaking! The tears flowed and flowed all night.

Of course Tony’s win on Saturday was just the icing on the cake of this season! If he doesn’t win another race this season, it will be enough for me!

Congratulations to Tony, Gene Haas, Darian Grubb, and the entire #14 team on their amazing win at Lowes Motor Speedway!!!

Tony Stewart is a rookie. You’re probably scratching your head since the 37 year old is a two time NASCAR series champion with more than 30 wins, over a hundred top fives under his belt and more than 10 years experience in the series. But Tony Stewart has entered a branch of the biz he knows little to nothing about. Team ownership. At least NASCAR Cup Series team ownership.

Those are two very frightening words for anyone, let alone a driver who plans on moonlighting as an owner. He’s been optimistic, though, and anyone can see why. While he left a wonderful organization to start a new career path with a sub par race team, it has potential.

The 70 team hasn’t had a very good track record with Stewart-Haas Racing, formerly called Haas CNC Racing, but Stewart still remains optimistic. It sometimes seems like he can climb into anything and put it in Victory Lane. "We wouldn't have taken this opportunity if we didn't think it was realistic to be in the Chase and have an opportunity of winning races and winning the championship," said Stewart. "Now whether that happens or not, obviously that will wait to be seen. We feel like we have the tools in place to do that, and ... I don't think all these guys would have come together if we didn't feel like we had the opportunity and resources to do that."

The 70 and 66 no longer exist now. They’ve become the 14 and the 39. Stewart chose the number 14 in honor of one of his own racing heroes, AJ Foyt. Ryan Newman will join Stewart at SHR in the number 39 with the US Army as one of his primary sponsors, while Stewart will be sponsored by Old Spice, Office Depot, and Burger King. Its been speculated that Newman will also be sponsored by Burger King for a few races.

Stewart isn’t the only one who’s optimistic about SHR’s chances this coming season. "I really think we're going to hit the ground running," said Darian Grubb, who left series giant Hendrick Motorsports to become Stewart’s crew chief. "I think we're going to go down [to Daytona], and we're going to be very competitive. We're ready to go to Daytona now. We're itching for the time we get to go be on the race track and let all this preparation pay off for us."

So will SHR crash and burn? Or will we see this organization that one year ago could never have dreamed of being a championship contender become on of the greatest in the NASCAR Cup Series? All of that still remains to be seen but there’s most definitely a much greater chance that SHR will succeed.