Hampton, Georgia (AP) —William Byron had a freight train in the rear-view mirror. He was like a sitting duck. Fortunately for him, all of these challengers started fighting with each other rather than working together to defeat the leader.
While Byron is cruising towards the checkered flag for his third victory in the NASCAR Cup career Last crash Deployed behind him on Sunday with a proper finish for the chaotic and thrilling race on the modified Atlanta Motor Speedway.
“It’s pretty wild,” said 24-year-old Byron. “I’m out of breath. It was crazy.”
The track’s makeover with new pavement and steep banking responded to the predictions of an enthusiastic pack race at blazing speeds approaching the speeds found in Talladega and Daytona.
It was like a short track race on the Super Speedway.
There were 46 lead changes among the 20 record-breaking drivers in Atlanta. This is a crowded traffic jam that is not far from each other in a race of more than 4 hours. Shipwreck taken out Some top candidates, and a bunch of destroyed race cars to take home.
“It’s a difficult, stressful, different type of race,” said winner Crew Chief Rudy Fogle.
Brian was leading the final restart with 13 laps remaining. Baba Wallace temporarily took the top spot, but No. 24 Rick Hendrick Motorsport Chevrolet quickly overtook him.
Wallace still seemed to be in the most enviable position, aiming for a second career win, especially if he could get a useful push to hit a slingshot on the final lap. But everyone behind Byron started fighting for a position. They all wanted to put themselves in position to win.
It worked perfectly for Byron. Byron surpassed the Rothschilds by 0.145 seconds, with four cars, including Wallace, spinning across the line in the final wreck of the day.
“It’s hard to be a leader,” Hoogle said. “We did a lot of things well.”
Wallace finished in 13th place. The rest of the top five were Kurt Busch, Daniels Ares, and Cory Lajoy’s best career shows.
With the last twist, Christopher Bell actually crossed the line second, but NASCAR dived under the double white line on the back stretch of the last lap to pass the chastain. I penalized him. The bell was dropped on the 23rd.
Chastain At the beginning of the race, I made a big comeback by blowing off the tires while leading. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. also blew the tires while running in front of him.Current series champion Kyle Larson, the front of his No. 5 Chevrolet patched with tape, surrendered to the top spot at that time. Denny Hamlin hit him From behind, I’m looking to give him a helpful push — just to send him to a spin that knocked them out of the race.
“It’s like everyone is at the mercy of a loved one,” Ryan Blaney said during the alert period.
It’s a complete summary of things.
Bash Brothers
On restart after an initial crash of Chastain Another shipwreck I took out both Brothers Dillon.
Kyle Busch gave Austin Dillon a slight bump from behind, entered the quad oval, and sent Dillon to the wall. Thai Dillon and Chase Briscoe spun behind them, causing great damage to the young Dillon.
The brothers were forced to retire, Austin finishing in 35th place and Thailand finishing in 36th place.
“I had the gas fully open and 18 (Bush) pushed us and loosened me,” said Austin Dillon. “I don’t want to say anything worse. It hurts. It’s been two weeks in a row when I was taken out.”
In Phoenix, Suarez contacted Dillon on the final lap, sending No. 3 to the wall and sacrificing the top 10 finish.
Short day
Noah Gragson, the star of the Xfinity series who made his debut in the cup race, was the first man to lose control on turn one and crash into the outer wall.
“I’m sorry,” Gragson said on the radio before getting off the tattered Kauri Glacing Chevrolet.
Gragson won the second tier Xfinity series six times and tried to build a field at the opening Daytona 500. A 23-year-old Las Vegas native couldn’t get on the track because of a crash in one of the qualifying races. On the day of the race.
That wasn’t a problem in Atlanta, but it was a short day for Gragson to wreck on lap 24.
Odds and end
Byron won Stage 1 under the yellow. Blagny did the same in Stage 2. … Byron was the fifth different winner in five races this season. Three of Hendrick’s four drivers are winners, with Byron joining Larson and Alex Bowman. .. .. Bell attacked Jackman With your right foot during the pit stop. The crew was able to complete the change before being taken to the Infield Care Center for treatment. His condition was not immediately available and another crew member set foot on the rest of Bell’s stops. … Brad Keselowski and Harrison Burton had to start from behind the field. Keselowski was punished for changing cars after the inspection, but Burton’s machine failed the inspection. … there were only 37 entries — 3 fullfield shy. … After years of struggling to attend, a promising crowd appeared in Atlanta on a sunny day when temperatures rose to nearly 70 degrees Celsius. The infield was full, and the huge stands were dotted with vacant seats. … NASCAR will return to Atlanta on July 11th.
next
The Cup Series will head to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, as the first of six road races of the season. Chase Elliott won the first COTA race a year ago.
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