Short Laps

1 On Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway, Tony Stewart (right) ended a 20-race winless streak by taking the checkered flag in the USG Sheetrock 400. Stewart, a two-time Cup champ with a history of heating up in the second half of the season, moved from seventh to sixth in the standings.

2 The resurgence of Roush-Fenway Racing continued at Chicagoland, where Roush's Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards finished second and third, respectively. Over the past month the gap between Roush-Fenway and Hendrick Motorsports, the team that won 10 of the first 14 races, has clearly narrowed.