Stewart poised to capture first win of '07 at Daytona

	Despite a solid season that has him sixth in the points race, Tony Stewart has yet to win a race as the season hits its halfway point. AP

The Nextel Cup season reaches the halfway point Saturday at Daytona with Tony Stewart still seeking his first victory. And that gets my vote as the season's biggest surprise.

After missing the Chase last season, Stewart closed out on a roll, winning three of 2006's last eight races. He opened '07 with victories in the Budweiser Shootout and the Gatorade Duel 150 and was leading the Daytona 500 with 48 laps to go when Kurt Busch put him into the Turn 4 wall. Stewart finished 43rd in the opener.

Stewart has recovered nicely in the Race to the Chase, with two second places and a third and eight more top-10s, carrying the Home Depot Chevrolet to sixth in the points. But he's also the only driver in the top 10 without a win.

With a 10-point bonus for each victory when the points are reset after 26 races, each W is crucial to the Chase and a driver's position in it. Stewart isn't alone. Clint Bowyer, in 11th, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., in 12th, are in the same boat if they make the Chase, although Stewart has a 200-point lead on Earnhardt.

A return to Daytona this weekend, though, provides an excellent opportunity for Stewart to secure his first Chase bonus points. He's won the last two Pepsi 400s and the No. 20 -- chassis No. 119 -- he'll be driving won the Shootout in February. Chassis No. 70, which won the last two 400s and the Duel, was demolished in the wreck in the 500.

Daytona is, of course, a restrictor-plate race, and drivers and teams that get on top usually stay on top. Typically, they're the best teams, too, which have the resources to devote to engine and aerodynamic development for a package that has been used only at Daytona and Talladega. And Saturday's race will be the finale for the old-style chassis; the Car of Tomorrow will be used at Talladega in October and in all the races next season.

Restrictor-plate means running in packs and running the risk of being caught up in multiple-car crashes. That makes the safest place in front.

"The restrictor-plate races at Daytona are always a wild card race," Stewart said. "You never know who's going to win."

But Stewart likes his chances more in the 400 than the 500. The hot and sticky weather of July agrees with the Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolets.

"We feel that our cars are better at Daytona in July than they actually are in February because the track is so much hotter and slicker," Stewart explained. "We seem to be able to find a balance that our car really likes. We have a lot of confidence that we can go back and win again.

"It's (Daytona) probably five times more of a handling race track in July than it is in February because of the heat. Even though it might cool off a little bit at night, there's so much heat in the race track that is just stays there and soaks in the asphalt."