Chase Briscoe lived out his own All-American dream Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway.
Briscoe, a native of Mitchell, Indiana, turned NASCAR’S return to Joliet for the first time since 2019 into a Midwest triumph.
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And after celebrating by mimicking a fishing motion in honor of his Bass Pro Shops sponsor, Briscoe soaked it all in.
“I felt like that was the most American I’ll ever feel in my life,” Briscoe said. “Winning in the red, white and blue Bass Pro Shops paint scheme on Fourth of July weekend on the 250th year of America … what a cool weekend.”
Briscoe fought off a charge from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell to hold on for his first Cup Series victory of the season, winning the eero 400 in front of a sold-out crowd at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet.
Points leader Denny Hamlin increased his edge with a third-place finish, while William Byron led the most laps with 94 and won each of the first two stages but settled for fourth, just ahead of 2019 Chicagoland Speedway champion Alex Bowman.
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Bubba Wallace, Ryan Blaney, Ty Gibbs, Corey Heim and Riley Herbst rounded out the top 10.
Tyler Reddick, who entered the night one point behind Hamlin in the points standings after leading through each of the first 18 races of the season, had a forgettable night. Reddick finished 36th after being forced to go to the garage and change his car’s radiator.
Briscoe came out of the pits with the lead with 42 laps to go and never relinquished it despite a strong push from Bell.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say that when I saw him coming I was like, ‘Of course, I’m going to get beat at the end on tires and be the last guy to not win at JGR,” Briscoe said. “But I was already driving as hard as I could. I just knew I had to be perfect.”
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Briscoe also won an ARCA race in 2016 at Chicagoland Speedway.
“I haven’t been able to win on a 1.5-mile track in the Cup Series before now,” he said. “It’s really cool to win at one of them. I feel like they’re a staple of what the Cup Series is.
“To do it here at Chicagoland is really special. It’s in the Midwest. It’s close to home. This has been a place I’ve always loved coming to and I’ve missed it. It’s always been one of my top five tracks.”
Speaking of Midwest natives, the race began with a local legend driving the pace car — former Joliet Catholic star and longtime Tampa Bay Buccaneers fullback Mike Alstott.
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“It’s great to be back home and to be here representing NASCAR and Joliet in the pace car,” Alstott said. “I understand the NASCAR community and how loyal they are and how they love their races and their drivers and the whole experience.
“I love watching these guys compete and I’m glad to be a part of it.”
The night ended with a football tie as well. Joe Gibbs, the Hall of Fame NFL coach, saw his car go to victory lane.
“It’s a special weekend,” Gibbs said. “I appreciate everyone in Chicago and it’s just great being back here. There are so many great fans. For Chase and our team, it’s just great and it means so much to us.”
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Bell, another of Gibbs’ drivers, came up just short.
“It was a great day,” Bell said. “We almost went to victory lane. Toyotas are fast. It seems like a monkey can drive them. It’s just disappointing when you get beat by another monkey.”
Briscoe, on the other hand, had yet another reason to celebrate. He won on the birthday of James Small, his crew chief.
Did Briscoe pack a gift for Small?
“This was it,” he said. “For James, this is as good as it’s going to get.”
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