Ross Chastain delivered a brilliant performance at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, securing his first win of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season. In an exciting finish, Chastain drove his Kubota Chevrolet to victory by leading the final 21 laps and outpacing a field of fierce rivals.
The competition at Kansas was intense from the start, with Chastain showing strong performance despite initial doubts about his car’s pace.
“To come and do this, there are times where I didn’t think after practicing qualifying we had what it took,” Chastain admitted via NBC. “It didn’t feel great all day, but our Kubota Chevy, it was better as the rubber went down, and the adjustments were great.”
His perseverance paid off as he masterfully navigated the track during the final laps.
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William Byron finished closely behind in second place:
“I feel like (Chastain) got the restart he needed to, and I was in the second row just trying to clear those guys,” Byron said. “Once I got clear of them, my balance was okay. Just a little bit tight, but just kind of inching up on him.
“I needed probably, you know, for it to be a longer run being in second.” Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, and Ty Gibbs rounded out the top five, each delivering solid performances.
The race was not without its drama. Early on, Kyle Larson encountered misfortune when a cut tire forced him into the wall on Lap 20, prompting a caution. Although he fell a lap down, Larson managed to claw his way back, eventually finishing 26th. Reflecting on the race, Larson said the following:
“Our team did a really good job fighting and clawing to get better where we ended up. I wish it would have just went green to the end, instead of having those couple cautions.”
Another moment involved Kyle Busch, who spun out on Lap 237 while leading the race. Attempting to lap Chase Briscoe, Busch’s move resulted in a spin.
“I am sure he was racing to stay on the lead lap with whoever was in front of him there,” Busch explained. “Back in the old days when you were under 30 to go or whatever it was, lap traffic would kind of lay over and give you a lane and let the leaders race.
“I just wasn’t getting that, so I tried to force my hand to get that and get to his outside, and for whatever reason, it just gave all the air in all the wrong places and I spun out.”
The race’s earlier stages also offered their share of excitement, with William Byron capturing the first stage and Alex Bowman taking the win in the second stage.
Chase Elliott and Joey Logano finished in 9th and 14th place, respectively. These positions secured their transfer spots, keeping them above the cutline and ahead of Tyler Reddick, Daniel Suarez, Chase Briscoe, and Austin Cindric, who now find themselves below the cut.
The next challenge on the NASCAR Cup Series calendar is the Talladega Superspeedway race, scheduled for Sunday, October 6, at 2:30 p.m. ET.