Even before the race was set to begin, though, Tony Stewart would have even more adversity to face. Carl Edwards claimed the pole for the race at Homestead, while Stewart would start 15th.

With Edwards on pole and Martin Truex Jr (#56 NAPA Toyota) starting alongside, the final race in the 2011 season was green. Early on, though, trouble would hit one of the former chasers. Kurt Busch (#22 Shell/Pennzoil Dodge) would lose his transmission on the second lap, bringing out the caution. Busch, out of the race, was asked to be interviewed by ESPN’s Dr. Jerry Punch, but instead gave a profanity-laden statement to Punch, who later gave up on the interview.

Meanwhile, a new kink in this race for the championship was developing. Tony Stewart sat on pit road under caution while his crew attempted to replace the front screen on his grill. The screen had been punctured by a part of Kurt Busch’s transmission, forcing Stewart’s crew to make repairs, and forcing him to restart 40th.

Carl Edwards dominated much of the race, leading a race-high 116 laps. However, Tony Stewart was making progress forward through the field, lap by lap. And after the second caution of the race, Stewart was back up front, battling for the lead.

As the race began to reach its conclusion, Stewart took the lead on a late restart from Brad Keselowski (#2 Miller Lite Dodge) and Kyle Busch (#18 Interstate Battreries Toyota), and never looked back. Stewart took the win in the final race of the Chase, and with Carl Edwards finishing second, the two sat tied on top of the points.

With Edwards and Stewart tied for the championship, the first time ever in Sprint Cup history that this occurred, it came down to a tiebreaker. The driver with the most wins would win the championship, per the NASCAR rulebook. And with this, Tony Stewart was assured his third Sprint Cup Series Championship, and his first as an owner-driver.

By all accounts, the final race of the 2011 chase was the closest and best in Sprint Cup Series history.

Here is a rundown of the finishers of the Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway:

1) 14 Tony Stewart (clinched Sprint Cup Championship)

2) 99 Carl Edwards

3) 56 Martin Truex Jr

4) 17 Matt Kenseth

5) 24 Jeff Gordon

6) 33 Clint Bowyer

7) 4 Kasey Kahne

29 Kevin Harvick

9) 11 Denny Hamlin

10) 31 Jeff Burton

11) 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr

12) 39 Ryan Newman

13) 78 Regan Smith

14) 1 Jamie McMurray

15) 43 AJ Allmendinger

16) 27 Paul Menard

17) 83 Brian Vickers

18) 00 David Reutimann

19) 2o Joey Logano

20) 2 Brad Keselowski -1 Lap

21) 71 Mike Bliss -1 Lap

22) 38 Travis Kvapil -1 Lap

23) 18 Kyle Busch -1 Lap

24) 5 Mark Martin -1 Lap

25) 21 Trevor Bayne (Rookie) -1 Lap

26) 13 Casey Mears -1 Lap

27) Bobby Labonte -1 Lap

28) 35 Dave Blaney -2 Laps

29) 32 TJ Bell -2 Laps

30) 36 Geoffrey Bodine -4 Laps

31) 42 Juan Pablo Montoya -6 Laps

32) 48 Jimmie Johnson -6 Laps

33) 34 David Gilliland -22 Laps

34) 22 Kurt Busch -47 Laps

35) 16 Greg Biffle DNF

36) 51 Landon Cassill DNF

37) 84 Cole Whitt (Rookie) DNF

38) 6 David Ragan DNF

39) 9 Marcos Ambrose DNF

40) 87 Joe Nemechek DNF

41) 55 JJ Yeley DNF

42) 30 David Stremme DNF

43) 66 Michael McDowell DNF

Did Not Qualify:  46 Scott Speed, 7 Reed Sorenson, 37 Mike Skinner, 92 Scott Riggs, 93 Grant Enfinger (Rookie)

Of note is that Andy Lally, who formerly drove the number 71 for TRG Motorsports before he left the team before the Homestead race, was locked into winning the Sprint Cup Series rookie of the year title, as he was the only one to compete in enough races to contend for the title.

As we close the 2011 season, we now look forward to the 2012 season. Kansas Speedway will have a new fall date as the track will be repaved after the April race, sending the fall race into late October. Meanwhile, it appears to be the end of the road for Team Red Bull, as without a new influx of money, the team will cease to exist after this year. The same goes for David Ragan and the 6 car for Roush-Fenway Racing. Meanwhile, Brian Vickers and David Reutimann will be looking for work, while Michael Waltrip Racing welcomes Clint Bowyer and Mark Martin into its stable of drivers. And finally, Danica Patrick will race for Stewart-Haas Racing next season in a few races.

The 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was one for the history books, but we are all already looking forward to Daytona in February 2012.