Chase Elliott Wins in Atlanta in a Race Full of Incidents
Local driver Chase Elliott conquered the victory in the NASCAR Cup Series in Atlanta, after an event full of incidents. Elliott surpassed Brad Keselowski on the last lap, securing his twentieth career victory. The Dawsonville, Georgia native secured a spot in the NASCAR playoffs with this victory, his first since April 2024 in Texas. Furthermore, it’s his first win in Atlanta since 2022.The race was marked by multiple crashes, especially one in the second stage that involved several of the most prominent drivers, leaving many with damaged vehicles. Joey Logano, who led the first 36 laps, was one of those affected.Never in my entire life… this is incredible. This is something I will remember for the rest of my life.
Chase Elliott
- William Byron
- Austin Cindric
- Ross Chastain
- Josh Berry
- Corey LaJoie
- Daniel Suarez
He destroyed the whole field. I still don’t know exactly how it started… but it was total chaos. Cars were sideways and braking. I got hit from all sides.
Joey Logano
The race at EchoPark Speedway, formerly known as Atlanta Motor Speedway, was the debut of the In-Season Challenge, a five-race tournament. The early elimination of important drivers highlighted the challenges of predicting results in a format similar to March Madness. The top two seeds were eliminated prematurely. Denny Hamlin, seeded number 1, finished in 31st place and lost against Ty Dillon, who finished eighth. Chase Briscoe, who had beaten Hamlin at Pocono Raceway the previous week, was the seeded number 2 before being eliminated in a crash. The tournament winner will receive a prize of one million dollars as part of a new media rights deal that includes TNT. Elliott and Keselowski led the race when a yellow flag with 33 laps to go forced a decision on whether to pit for new tires. Both stayed on the track, and Elliott fell back after the restart, until he made his final attack. Ryan Blaney was eliminated in a crash in the first stage. Christopher Bell crashed into the wall, causing an accident that ended the stage with Cindric in the lead. Cindric was involved in the major crash at the start of the second stage. Kyle Busch, Hamlin, and Bubba Wallace were also involved. Tyler Reddick beat Elliott by 0.001 seconds to win the second stage, in a battle between drivers seeking their first stage and overall win of the season. The Friday qualifying and the Xfinity race, won by Nick Sanchez, were affected by lightning and rain. Saturday night’s race was also threatened by the weather. The next NASCAR Cup Series race will be in Chicago on July 6th.Some zigged. Some zagged. Most crashed.
Denny Hamlin
