CONCORD, N.C. (AP)—Tony Stewart suffered his second heartbreaking defeat of the season Sunday night when a flat tire late in the Coca-Cola 600 handed Kasey Kahne the victory in NASCAR’s longest race of the year.
Stewart, who lost the season-opening Daytona 500 when he was passed on the last lap by Ryan Newman, had the tire go flat with three laps to go. He was forced to pit, allowing Kahne to zip past him for the victory.
Stewart has yet to win the 600 in 10 career tries, an agonizing stretch for a former open-wheel driver who grew up dreaming of an Indianapolis 500 victory. With his focus now on NASCAR, he’ll settle for any sort of Memorial Day weekend win.
He wound up a frustrating 18th and stormed into his hauler without comment as Kahne celebrated in Victory Lane for the second consecutive week. Kahne became the first driver since Jimmie Johnson in 2003 to win both the All-Star race and the 600 in this eight days of racing at Lowe’s Motor Speedway.
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