Stewart was closing in on the win until a late caution — ironically caused when Busch spun — set up a final restart with three laps to go. Stewart was out front, but was surrounded by a fleet of Hendrick cars who seemed hellbent on getting their new teammate to checkered flag.

The push from Johnson helped Earnhardt slide past Stewart on the outside and into the front. Jeff Gordon was behind Stewart, and with no chance to win the race himself, he certainly wasn’t going to push Stewart past his teammate.

“I’m real happy for Junior,” Gordon said. “It’s awesome to have him at Hendrick Motorsports and real proud of those guys to do that in their first race out.”

Stewart was content with second place.

“I’m pretty happy. I mean, it’s hard to beat Dale Jr.,” he said. “I mean, he’s one of the best restrictor-plate drivers there’s ever been. He learned a lot from his dad, and I’m not sure he’s not better than his dad in all honesty.”

Johnson finished third, and was followed by Gordon, Reed Sorenson and Casey Mears. Mears’ car was too low and failed post-race inspection. NASCAR planned to look more closely at the car Sunday.

All four Hendrick cars finished in the top six.

But the celebration was strictly for Earnhardt, who was met in Victory Lane by Hendrick. The two are under tremendous pressure to produce winning results for NASCAR’s most popular driver, who hasn’t been a consistent contender for nearly two years.

He failed to make the Chase for the championship last season, his final year with Dale Earnhardt Inc. Unable to get along with stepmother Teresa, Earnhardt fled his late father’s race team for a fresh start with powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports. The team won 18 of 36 races last season and its second straight championship.

Now Earnhardt is expected to be in the mix, contending for his first Cup title.

Does this first win ease the burden?

“I don’t know,” he said. “I never felt like I had a monkey on my back. I’ve always raced with pressure. I’ve always raced and worked and lived in tumultuous situations and I just got used to it, I guess. And Tony Jr. working with me and side by side, we grew up through it.

“Even before we got to this level, life wasn’t easy. And there wasn’t ever a golden road, easy to travel. But it is what it is. There’s a lot of pressure, I think, for us, but we’ve always delivered and I hope we will continue.”

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