Ross Chastain kept a streak alive and won his first crown jewel race in the process.
The Trackhouse Racing driver ran down William Byron over the final 37 laps to capture the NASCAR Cup Series’ longest race, Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. Chastain became the ninth different winner in the past nine races at the sport’s home track.
After fending off a battle with Denny Hamlin, Byron withstood a charge from Chastain until the No. 1 Chevrolet suddenly closed a three-tenth’s gap and got by with six laps to go to beat Byron by 0.673 seconds for his first win this season in the 66th running of the event.
The Alva, Fla., native started last in the 40th spot at the 1.5-mile speedway after going to a backup car following a wreck in practice Saturday. He led just eight laps in his sixth career win, while Byron managed a race- and career-high 283.
“To drive on that final run in the (600) and pass two cars that had been way better … we just won the (600)!” yelled Chastain, whose last win was at Kansas last September. “My team built me another car. … We just stayed in it. … I passed them because my team went and built me a car all night.”
A Charlotte native, Byron was bidding for his first victory at his nearby track but could not deny Chastain, who in trademark fashion smashed a victory watermelon on the frontstretch before munching a giant chunk.
“I was just defending,” Byron said. “I was getting a little bit tight. … He got a run on me and was able to get to the bottom and clear me off of (Turn) 2. It’s disappointing to lead that many laps (and not win).”
Pole-sitter Chase Briscoe, AJ Allmendinger and Brad Keselowski completed the top five.
In attempting “The Double,” Kyle Larson struggled to a 37th-place finish after wrecking out at the midway point of the Indianapolis 500 earlier in the day. He finished 27th in that race.
Larson passed Briscoe on Lap 9 but fought with his car and soon tagged the wall hard. The 2021 Cup champion then spun by himself off Turn 4 on Lap 42, forcing him to pit road for a long stop.
Running ninth with three circuits left in Stage 1, Alex Bowman’s No. 48 banged the wall off Turn 4 and slid through the frontstretch grass. Byron won the second segment during the second caution period, while Tyler Reddick and Christopher Bell trailed him.
Byron held an 8 1/2-second lead as Stage 2 neared its end. The two-time Daytona 500 champ then eased to the segment win over Hamlin and Reddick with Carson Hocevar continuing his strong run in fourth.
The 400-lap race’s biggest melee was on Lap 246 after a restart. Daniel Suarez, Ryan Blaney and Briscoe made contact, and Larson and Justin Haley were involved in the sixth caution on the frontstretch.
Hamlin led 34 laps in Stage 3, but Byron worked his way past the No. 11 Toyota in the closing circuits to sweep the first three stages and pocket the maximum bonus points.
Restarting second on Lap 308, Hocevar had the engine on his No. 77 Spire Motorsports ride expire, triggering the eighth caution.
–Field Level Media
