Stewart wins first race of Chase for the Sprint Cup

Tony Stewart had more than enough fuel to finish this time.

A year after running out of gas and faltering in a NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup opener in New Hampshire, Stewart cruised toward victory lane with a 0.9-second margin over Kevin Harvick in Monday’s Geico 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.

“At the very end we knew the fuel mileage was going to be an issue,” said Darian Grubb, Stewart’s crew chief. “But Tony is one of the best at saving fuel. We tried to keep him updated ... and make sure we had enough to make it to the end.”

As other drivers lost fuel gambles and faded, Stewart crossed the finish line for his first Sprint Cup series win of the season.

“I’m just glad I saved as much as I did and had a good enough car to get us there,” Stewart said.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. was third, his best series performance in 14 races, and eight Chase racers finished among the top 10 in the 43-car field.

The kickoff to the 10-race Chase for the Sprint Cup was originally scheduled for Sunday but was postponed because of persistent rain.

Monday’s race was conducted under cloudy but dry conditions with temperatures in the 60s and occasional sunshine.

Stewart’s victory was the 40th of his career, his third at Chicagoland and his first Sprint Cup series triumph since Oct. 10, 2010, at Auto Club Speedway.

Stewart was second behind Martin Truex Jr. with 15 laps to go. But Truex didn’t pit with other leaders 36 laps earlier and paid the price when his fuel ran out and he pulled off the oval.

“We had to pit,” Truex said. “We did not feel confident enough that we could save enough fuel to make it.”

Others in the final sprint -- pole leader Matt Kenseth, five-time defending champion Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Newman -- all faded as gas dwindled.

Kenseth said he was forced to let Stewart take the lead so he could save fuel.

“We still ran out with a half a lap or a lap to go,” he said. “It’s pretty aggravating to do all the work and qualifying and pit stops and adjustments but none of it makes a difference.”

In last year’s Chase race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Stewart’s tank hit empty with two laps to go after he held a lead. He lost the chance to win and took a huge hit in the points standings.

On Monday, Stewart took the lead for good in the 253rd lap and faced a juggling act to stay in front while also monitoring fuel consumption.

“Once we got a second-and-a-half, two-second lead we could start backing off to their [trailing drivers’] pace and start saving fuel,” said Stewart, who started in the middle of the pack after qualifying with the 26th-fastest time.

Harvick, who came in sharing the points lead with Kyle Busch, took over sole possession with 2,054 points while Stewart vaulted into second with 2,047. Busch is now ninth, and Jeff Gordon, who finished 24th, slipped from third to 11th.

The Chase now shifts to Sunday’s Sylvania 300 at the mile-long New Hampshire Motor Speedway track.

sports@latimes.com

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Title chase

The standings in the Chase for the Sprint Cup:

*--* PL DRIVER PTS 1. Kevin Harvick 2,054 2. Tony Stewart 2,047 3. Carl Edwards 2,044 4. Kurt Busch 2,043 5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 2,041 6. Brad Keselowski 2,040 Ryan Newman 2,040 8. Jimmie Johnson 2,038 9. Kyle Busch 2,035 10. Matt Kenseth 2,030 11. Jeff Gordon 2,029 12. Denny Hamlin 2,013 *--*

Up next

Sylvania 300

New Hampshire Motor Speedway

Sunday, 11 a.m. TV: ESPN