KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A look at the winners and losers from Sunday’s Cup race at Kansas Speedway.
WINNERS
Chase Elliott — This was the weekend he and the No. 9 team needed. He started fourth — his best starting spot in the playoffs. His struggles in qualifying had carried over to races in recent weeks. He had only eight stage points in the first four playoff races, tied for the fewest among playoff drivers. Sunday, Elliott scored 15 stage points. A call by crew chief Alan Gustafson to go with four tires on the final pit stop — when many others chose two — helped Elliott nip Denny Hamlin at the finish line to win and advance to the Round of 8.
‘Seas parted’ for Elliott to win at Kansas
For Chase Elliott, “everything worked out perfect” on the final overtime restart to steal the playoff win at Kansas after the “seas parted” up front.
William Byron — A ninth-place finish typically isn’t something for the regular season champion to celebrate but this was meaningful for a couple of reasons. Byron was awful for a good part of the race. His average running position was 17.2. Things improved in the final stage to score the top 10. Just as important for Byron was that teammate Chase Elliott won. Had Bubba Wallace got by Denny Hamlin and held off Elliott that would have put Byron in more challenging spot to advance in the playoffs. Instead, Byron is 40 points above the cutline going into Sunday’s elimination race at the Charlotte Roval.
NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver went from 10th to first on the final restart to beat Denny Hamlin.
Christopher Bell — His third-place finish marked his fourth consecutive top-10 result. He is 44 points above the cutline.
Bell leaving Kansas ‘pretty satisfied’
Christopher Bell is leaving Kansas Speedway “pretty satisfied” and thought he left it all on the track to contend for the win.
Chase Briscoe — He is the only driver to finish in the top 10 in all five playoff races this season. Briscoe finished fourth at Kansas. He is 21 points above the cutline heading to the Charlotte Roval.
Briscoe recaps ‘crazy’ restarts at Kansas
Chase Briscoe unpacks the position he was in on the final overtime restart at Kansas and the craziness that ensues as he looks ahead to the playoff elimination race at the Roval.
Shane van Gisbergen — Came back from a stop-and-go penalty on the first lap due to an inspection violation and finished 10th. It is his first top 10 on an oval. Next up for the series is the Charlotte Roval. The last four Cup road course races have been won by van Gisbergen.
LOSERS
Zane Smith — Contact from John Hunter Nemechek sent Smith up on two wheels against the outside wall before rolling down the track. Smith was uninjured but not pleased with Nemechek, saying: “It was a wild ride, no doubt. Before I knew it, I had a decent restart going and I just get wrecked by (Nemechek). He just drives through me and then I was sliding on the wall.”
Smith flips at Kansas after wild wall ride
Zane Smith goes for a wild ride at Kansas after contact from John Hunter Nemechek sent him to the outside wall and causing the No. 38 to flip down the front stretch.
Denny Hamlin — It might seem unfair to put a driver who won both stages, scored the bonus point for the fastest lap and finished second in the losers category, but Hamlin was not in a mood to celebrate after the race. He so wanted that 60th career Cup win but his duel with Bubba Wallace allowed Chase Elliott get ahead on the inside line and win the race, leaving Hamlin to feel “massive disappointment.”
Chase Elliott beat Denny Hamlin by .069 seconds at Kansas Speedway.
Team Penske — A week after Team Penske was dominant in Ryan Blaney’s win in New Hampshire, the organization struggled at Kansas. It started on Saturday when Blaney had a tire go down and hit the wall, leading to a backup car. He started at the rear with teammates Austin Cindric and Joey Logano. No team Penske car finished better than 21st (by Logano). Logano holds the final transfer spot going into the Charlotte Roval by 13 points on Ross Chastain.
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