Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes celebrates the Steelers’ 27-23 victory over Arizona. Holmes was named MVP after the Super Bowl on Sunday in Tampa, Fla.

Tampa, Fla. ? There was only one Lombardi Trophy to award Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium, but two teams were championship-worthy in a scintillating Super Bowl XLIII.

The Pittsburgh Steelers had to fight the underdog Arizona Cardinals to the final minute to escape with a 27-23 victory.

It was a record sixth Super Bowl title for the Steelers, who broke a tie with the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers for most Lombardi trophies won by a franchise.

“It was wonderful,” Steelers chairman Dan Rooney said.

The Cardinals were making their first Super Bowl appearance and were in position to pull a dramatic upset after quarterback Kurt Warner threw a 64-yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald with 2 minutes, 47 seconds remaining.

That completed a comeback from 13 points down–which would have set a Super Bowl record if it had held up–and gave the Cardinals a 23-20 lead.

But after being held to three points in the second half by Arizona’s defense, Pittsburgh’s offense came to life.

Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said he told his teammates when they got the ball at their 22 with 2:30 remaining: “It’s now or never, guys. You’ll be remembered forever if you do this.”

Roethlisberger went on to direct what teammate Hines Ward called the defining drive of Roethlisberger’s career. It included a 40-yard pass to receiver Santonio Holmes to move the ball to the Arizona six.

Two plays later, Roethlisberger threw to the right corner of the end zone to Holmes, who was covered by three Arizona defenders.

Holmes caught the pass and got both feet down within inches of the out-of-bounds line with 35 seconds left. The touchdown turned out to be the game-winner.

“My feet never left the ground,” Holmes said. “All I did was extend my arms and use my toes as extra extension to catch up to the ball.”

After the score, television cameras caught Warner slinging a towel on the Arizona sidelines and a wide-eyed Fitzgerald saying “no, no, no, no.”

The Cardinals got the ball back at their 23 and reached Pittsburgh’s 44 — still with hopes of pulling out a victory — until Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley forced a fumble that teammate Brett Keisel recovered.

“I just feel empty right now, to be honest with you,” said Fitzgerald, who was held to one reception in the first three quarters but had six for 115 yards in the fourth quarter.

“It’s kind of like it was all for nothing.”

Warner sparkled in defeat, almost certainly helping his chances of being elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He completed 31 of 43 passes for 377 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

Warner became the first quarterback with three 300-yard passing performances in Super Bowls. He also was the first player to throw for 300 yards against the Steelers’ top-ranked defense this season.

“It is always disappointing when there is a chance at the end and you are leading late in the game,” Warner said. “We got the fortunes to change and gave ourselves a chance. I have to give credit to the Steelers for their tremendous drive at the end. That is what championship teams are all about.

“That is what a championship game should be about.”

Ultimately, the night belonged to the Steelers and coach Mike Tomlin, 36, who became the youngest coach and the second African-American coach to win a Super Bowl.

Tomlin said when he saw Fitzgerald racing for Arizona’s go-ahead touchdown, he thought it was good that the Cardinals scored quickly because it left the Steelers time to rally.

“Steeler football is 60 minutes,” Tomlin said. “It’s never going to be pretty. Throw style points out the window. These guys fight to the end.”

The Cardinals, did too.

NFL teams aren’t supposed to be able to survive the kind of trauma they endured at the end of the first half.

Warner’s lone interception could’ve destroyed his confidence, and that of his teammates.

With 18 seconds remaining in the first half and Pittsburgh leading 10-7, the Cardinals were at the Steelers’ one and were on the verge of taking the lead.

With the crowd at Raymond James Stadium roaring, Warner tried a short pass over the middle to receiver Anquan Boldin in the end zone.

Steelers linebacker James Harrison dropped into coverage instead of blitzing and was in perfect position to steal the pass.

Harrison returned the interception 100 yards for a touchdown, the longest play in Super Bowl history.

“Those last couple of yards were probably tougher than anything in my life, but it was probably more gratifying than anything that has happened to me in football,” Harrison said.

In those 18 remarkable seconds, the entire game changed. Instead of possibly leading Pittsburgh 14-10 at halftime, the Cardinals trailed 17-7.

But the Cardinals didn’t fold.

They fell behind 20-7 in the third quarter, but fought back gallantly in the fourth.