(AP Photo/Paul Connors)

Tony Stewart couldn't quite reach Mark Martin on Saturday, but he's closing in on a trip to Victory Lane.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Few of the so-called experts gave Tony Stewart a chance to win a race, much less a third Sprint Cup title, in his first season as the owner/driver of newly formed Stewart-Haas Racing.

It's time to reconsider.

Although he doesn't have a win, the 2002 and 2005 champion is off to the best start of his career. He has six top-10s and is fourth in the points standings, better than his numbers in the first eight races during any of his 10 seasons at Joe Gibbs Racing.

Should he maintain his average start of 9.0 and average finish of 9.5, he would establish career bests in both categories.

A win can't be far away, either.

"We're getting there, man," Stewart said after Saturday night's second-place finish to Mark Martin, his third straight top-5. "I'm telling you, we're so close. We're going to get us a win here soon."

Stewart is a notoriously slow starter. Only 12 of his 33 Cup wins have come in the first half of the season.

To put this start into perspective, he was 14th in points with only three top-10s and one top-5 when he won the 2005 title. In 2002, he was fifth in points with five top-10s.

The fast start has lessened any stress he may have had as an owner/driver.

"This is the best spring or the first 10 races that I've ever had in my career so far, I think," Stewart said. "I don't think any of us would have predicted we would be in the top 5 in points. To have the runs like we have had the last three weeks, it definitely makes that a lot smaller and lighter weight on your shoulder than it would be if you were struggling."

Stewart's demeanor reflects his performance. He's relaxed and seemingly happier than any time during his career.

He wasn't even disappointed finishing second to the 50-year-old Martin, joining a large contingent of drivers to congratulate him in Victory Lane.

"I'm telling you, the last three weeks have just been amazing," Stewart said. "I mean, it's been so much fun. We've been in contention. We have led laps. We are doing everything right. It's just a matter of time.

"We are just a tick off, but there's no shame in losing to a guy like Mark Martin. I don't think there's anybody that's not a Mark Martin fan. Nobody, just like Kurt [Busch] said, works harder to stay in shape to be good and be fit and to be ready to go than Mark does. And when you see somebody that works that hard at it, you like to see the results come for him, too."

Fitness aside, the same could be said for Stewart, who has put his heart and soul into making Stewart-Haas a success.

"For us, it's been refreshing just when you've never had a start like this to the season," Stewart said. "It's nice to finally have one after 10 years of this. It's amazing to think that with a new team we can go out and have this kind of a start to the year."

Nationwide Series: High and low for Roush Fenway Racing

Friday's race at Phoenix had to be a mixed bag of emotions for team owner Jack Roush.

Greg Biffle won, giving Roush his 100th career victory in the series. But pole-sitter Carl Edwards finished 33rd with a broken valve spring, losing the points lead to Kyle Busch.

Edwards also was involved in a controversial incident with Michael Waltrip. Replays showed Edwards ran into the back of Waltrip 60 laps in and sent him spinning into the wall.

Waltrip was angered by the incident, accusing Edwards of purposely taking him out.

"I just got run over," Waltrip said. "Carl is always sorry, so I'm sure I've got that going for me."

NASCAR did not penalize Edwards for aggressive driving as it did Jason Leffler for a similar incident at Daytona. Leffler was held for five laps after NASCAR ruled he intentionally moved Steven Wallace out of the way.

Camping World Truck Series: Back at it in Kansas

The series took the weekend off but resumes Saturday at Kansas Speedway.

David Newton covers NASCAR for ESPN.com. He can be reached at dnewtonespn@aol.com.