After the post-race garage altercation between #20-Tony Stewart and #48 Crew Chief Chad Knaus, NASCAR officials called Stewart, Johnson and their crew chiefs to the hauler. Ten minutes later, Stewart and Johnson emerged together proclaiming friendship, in a very unusual, almost bizarre peace scene. “It’s fine,” Stewart said. “Like Jimmie says, we’re racing on the last lap of the Daytona 500. I was mad he pinched me into the fence. We bumped into each other; we both did the same thing to each other. So it’s fine. We both had good weeks here; we both finished in the top-10. We’re both leaving here in a good situation in the points. NASCAR, more than anything, wanted to make sure it wasn’t something that would linger overnight. Like I told Jimmie, we’re both really, really good friends, and this isn’t even something that’s going to linger tonight. It’s over with.”(Winston Salem Journal)
AND #48-Jimmie Johnson and #20-Tony Stewart were called to the NASCAR trailer for rough driving in the closing laps. Stewart claimed Johnson “pinched” him into the No. 10 car of Scott Riggs while Johnson said Stewart ran him into the wall. When asked what was discussed with the sanctioning body, Stewart answered, “We were trading cooking secrets.” Stewart, who finished seventh, had the dominant car, leading 107 laps. It was the second consecutive year he has led the most laps at the 500 and come away without a win. Johnson finished fifth.(FoxSports/Sporting News)(2-21-2005)
