Chase Elliott breaks drought with electrifying NASCAR Cup Collection win at EchoPark Speedway on Saturday evening within the Quaker State 400.
HAMPTON, Ga. – Timing his cross on the final lap to perfection, Georgia native Chase Elliott charged previous Brad Keselowski and held off the motive force of the No. 6 Ford to win Saturday evening’s Quaker State 400 at Echo Park Speedway.
Chase Elliott Breaks Drought
The favored victory within the first occasion of the NASCAR Cup Collection’ In-Season Problem broke a 44-race drought for Elliott relationship to final yr’s win at Texas Motor Speedway. The win was the second at EchoPark for the motive force of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and the twentieth of his profession.
Elliott crossed the end line 0.168 seconds forward of Keselowski and 0.170 seconds in entrance of teammate and third-place finisher Alex Bowman.
The 29-year-old from Dawsonville, Ga., superior to the second spherical of the five-race in-season event, eliminating first-round opponent Austin Dillon, who completed twentieth.
In a race that featured 46 lead adjustments amongst 13 drivers, Elliott obtained a welcome push from Bowman on the ultimate two laps, stranding Keselowski with no assist for a last cost.
“Unbelievable… unbelievable. How about that? Are you kidding me?” Elliott stated with an uncharacteristic show of emotion. “I’ve by no means in my life… That is unbelievable. Thanks guys a lot.
“What a particular automobile, and simply an enormous due to [sponsor] NAPA Auto Components and every part they do for me and to profit Youngsters’s Healthcare of Atlanta. [Cancer patient] Rhealynn Mills designed the quick NAPA Chevrolet tonight, so this was a number of enjoyable. This proper right here is one thing I’ll always remember.”
Within the closing laps, Elliott was fast to grab the chance that got here his method.
“Properly, I simply suppose that, truthfully, all of the playing cards fell on the suitable locations there these final couple laps,” he acknowledged. “What a loopy race, man. I don’t know if y’all had enjoyable, however it was wild from my seat. I’m so glad we obtained to run that factor on the market to the top.”
Keselowski led 46 laps, together with circuits 255-259 of 260, and superior previous Twenty first-place finisher Kyle Busch within the In-Season Problem, however he had no protection for Elliott’s last push.
“The 9 [Elliott] simply had the 48 [Bowman] behind him giving him an enormous push, and there was nothing I may do to cowl that,” Keselowski stated. “Once we had our vehicles linked up at RFK [Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing], we may do the identical factor, however we misplaced that, and it was simply form of a two-on-one, and I fought as onerous as I may.”
Tyler Reddick got here residence fourth, adopted by Erik Jones. Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Zane Smith, Ty Dillon, Chris Buescher, and Carson Hocevar accomplished the highest ten.
The race featured ten cautions for 68 laps. Logano led twice for a race-high 51 laps earlier than exiting after the lap 69 crash. Austin Cindric gained the primary stage. Reddick edged Elliott for the Stage 2 win by 0.001 seconds.
A Bracket Buster
The 18th occasion of the Cup Collection common season obtained off to a gradual begin that belied the extreme motion that will come later within the proceedings. A delay for a lightweight rain stopped the race for 14minutes, 34 seconds after 36 laps, with Joey Logano out entrance for your complete stint after ranging from the pole.
After the resumption of green-flag racing on lap 49, the primary of two main wrecks was simply eight circuits away. On lap 57, Christopher Bell turned sideways close to the apex of the third and fourth turns, igniting a seven-car wreck that despatched the vehicles of Bell and Ryan Blaney to the storage for tried repairs.
“I noticed a pair guys spinning and slowing,” Blaney stated. “I obtained to the apron and there was actually nowhere else for me to go however the apron. I attempted to get there and get away from it, however they form of got here down and obtained me within the right-rear and I ended up within the fence.
“There was no lacking that one.”
That was simply the appetizer. On the backstretch after a restart on lap 69, Buescher lifted to keep away from working into then-leader Chase Elliott, and the sector accordioned behind him, sending vehicles spinning uncontrolled and into one another.
One other Larger Bracket Buster
In a wreck that inflicted various levels of harm on 22 of the 40 vehicles, the automobiles of Ross Chastain, William Byron, Daniel Suarez, Denny Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric, Josh Berry and Corey LaJoie all discovered their technique to the storage—a number of on wrecker—a results of the 16-car pileup.
Byron exited the race in thirty sixth place.
“There wasn’t actually an entire lot I may see,” stated the two-time Daytona 500 winner. “I used to be form of catching the No. 22 [Logano] with just a little little bit of a run. All the fellows on the entrance had pitted in the course of the stage break and cycled to the mid-20s.
“We had been simply working an incredible race within the high 5. All of them stacked up and at that time, I went proper just a little bit; the wreck was already taking place, and I simply form of obtained shoved into it.”
For sure, the 2 main incidents had huge implications for the In-Season Problem. Hamlin, the highest seed, fell sufferer to thirty second seed Ty Dillon within the largest upset of the opening spherical.
“For all you Denny followers on the market, I simply beat your favourite driver,” Dillon quipped afterwards, borrowing from certainly one of Hamin’s signature phrases.
Shock Lineup in Second Spherical of In Season Problem
Second-seeded Briscoe was ousted by shut pal Noah Gragson, who survived the key incidents and completed twenty fifth. Byron bowed out to Ryan Preece, who completed fifteenth.
Becoming a member of Elliott, Keselowski, Ty Dillon, Preece and Gragson in advancing to the second spherical of the Problem had been Bowman, Bubba Wallace, John Hunter Nemechek, Jones, Hocevar, Reddick (eliminating Kyle Larson), AJ Allmendinger, Ty Gibbs and Smith.
After a disappointing exit, Byron’s level lead narrows to 37 factors over race winner, Chase Elliott. His win moved Elliott up three spots. Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, and Christopher Bell spherical out the highest 5.
Tyler Reddick strikes up one spot to sixth, whereas Ryan Blaney strikes again one to seventh. Ross Chastain stays in eighth, as Chris Buescher strikes up two to ninth. That strikes Chase Briscoe and Joey Logano to tenth and eleventh.
Up Subsequent
The NASCAR Cup Collection strikes on to the Chicago Avenue Race on Sunday, July sixth. The occasion begins at 2 pm ET on TNT, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and MAX. That is the second spherical of the In-Season Problem. Alex Bowman is the defending winner.
