1. Kyle Busch: Busch suffered several spins at Charlotte, but attrition and a big crash in the first overtime restart opened the door for Busch to contend for the win. He finished second to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin.
“I was frustrated for most of the race,” Busch said. “But when the going gets tough, you can do one of two things–either stay positive and hope for the best, or whine, complain, and moan and pray you get lucky. I chose the latter.”
2. Ross Chastain: Chastain ran up front consistently, winning Stage 3, and was in line for a certain top-five finish before being collected in an accident after the first overtime restart. Chastain finished 15th.
“I’m disappointed,” Chastain said. “Luckily, I already have two wins this season. I come from a family of watermelon farmers. So, qualifying for the NASCAR playoffs is important to me and my family. The last thing we want is for me to be ‘seedless’ once the post-season starts.”
3. Kyle Larson: Larson found trouble on many occasions early at Charlotte, but bounced back and was leading with a lap to go when Chase Briscoe lost control while chasing Larson, bringing out a caution. Larson spun on an overtime restart, and eventually finished ninth.
“Let’s see,” Larson said. “I wrecked in Saturday practice, had two equipment violations during Sunday’s race, hit the wall twice, had a fire in the pits, and spun a few times. Just a disastrous weekend. Heck, I don’t know what to say. I do know what not to say.”
4. Chase Elliott: Elliott won Stage 1 and led 86 laps, but a spin on lap 186 caused damage when he hit the wall. Elliott retired on Lap 193 and finished 33rd.
“I wasn’t around for all of it,” Elliott said, “but that race lasted more than five hours. To put that into perspective, it lasted as long as what Michael Waltrip’s ‘Grid Walk’ feels like.”
5. Alex Bowman: Bowman finished 10th at Charlotte.
“You saw an abundance of tire issues at Charlotte,” Bowman said. “There were blown tires, flat tires, runaway tires, and if you looked in the stands, plenty of spare tires.”
6. Ryan Blaney: Blaney got loose and tapped the wall on Lap 164, then lost control and triggered a big pileup on Lap 191, which involved 12 cars. Blaney finished 29th.
“I won $1,000,000 in the All-Star Race at Texas Motor Speedway,” Blaney said. “So, much like in Texas, I cost several drivers $1,000,000 at Charlotte.”
7. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished 12th at Charlotte.
“The Sunday before Memorial Day is the greatest day in auto racing,” Truex said. “You can wake up to the Monaco Grand Prix, have lunch with the Indianapolis 500, and get put to sleep by the Coca-Cola 600.”
8. Joey Logano: Logano finished 20th in the Coca-Cola 600.
“Like many other drivers,” Logano said, “I got taken out by a driver who made a dumb mistake. Charlotte was the long-time home of NASCAR’s All-Star Race. As you saw in Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600, the drivers in NASCAR are not all-stars. Some are scrubs.”
9. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin started on the pole at Charlotte, but faded quickly and was not much of a factor until a big wreck on an overtime restart left Hamlin with the lead. Hamlin battled Kyle Busch in the second overtime and edged his teammate by 0.014 seconds.
“That crash on the first overtime restart damaged the cars of a lot of contenders,” Hamlin said. “So, I have to thank Austin Dillon for ‘going for ‘broke.’”
10. William Byron: Byron was a victim of a Lap 191 crash triggered by Ryan Blaney, who lost control near the apron and veered into traffic. Byron’s day was done, and he finished 32nd.
“Six hundred miles is a long way,” Byron said. “It’s a physically draining race for the drivers, but even more mentally draining, especially for the fans who have to watch it.”
In one of stock car’s longest events on Memorial Day weekend spanning more than five hours and mired with a bevy of cautions and on-track carnages, Denny Hamlin survived two overtime attempts to storm to the lead and fend off teammate Kyle Busch to win the Coca-Cola 600 victory of this season at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 29.
The 41-year-old Hamlin from Chesterfield, Virginia, led four times for 15 of 413 over-scheduled laps and was able to assume the lead during the first of two overtime attempts just as a multi-car wreck ensued behind him on the frontstretch. Then during the second overtime attempt, he came out on top over a late battle with teammate Kyle Busch, including overtaking and clearing his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate on the final lap, before having enough horsepower to cross the finish line in first place and claim his first 600 triumph.
With on-track qualifying that determined the starting lineup occurring on Saturday, Denny Hamlin notched his first pole position of the season after clocking in a pole-winning lap at 183.680 mph in 29.399 seconds. Joining him on the front was Kurt Busch, who clocked in a qualifying lap at 183.661 mph in 29.402 seconds.
Prior to the event, Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola, Cole Custer, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kaz Grala dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments to their respective cars. In addition, Corey LaJoie started at the rear of the field in a backup car.
When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Hamlin launched ahead with the lead on the outside lane through Turn 1 before Kurt Busch drew himself in a side-by-side battle against his owner. As the field returned to the start/finish line, Hamlin managed to lead the first lap by a hair before Kurt Busch issued another early challenge for the lead.
During the following lap, Kurt Busch managed to edge Hamlin to lead the following lap before Hamlin returned the favor during the following lap. Then by the fourth lap, Hamlin managed to pull his No. 11 FedEx Toyota TRD Camry ahead of Busch’s No. 45 Monster Energy Toyota TRD Camry to clear the field for the lead while Kyle Busch was in third. Behind, Bubba Wallace muscled his way into third place ahead of William Byron, Christopher Bell and Tyler Reddick.
Through the first 10 scheduled laps, Kyle Busch, who overtook teammate Hamlin for the lead during the previous lap, was leading followed by Bubba Wallace, Reddick and Byron while Kurt Busch, Daniel Suarez, Bell, Martin Truex Jr. and Alex Bowman. Rookie Austin Cindric was back in 11th ahead of Chase Elliott, Chase Briscoe, Ryan Blaney, Michael McDowell, Austin Dillon, Ross Chastain, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano and Erik Jones while Kyle Larson was up in 21st ahead of Justin Haley, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, Chris Buescher and rookie Harrison Burton.
Seven laps later, the first caution of the event flew when Ryan Preece spun entering Turn 4 on the outside lane. Just behind, Buescher and Noah Gragson spun separately to avoid Preece with Buescher making contact with Preece. By then, Kyle Busch was leading by more than a second over Bubbaa Wallace followed by Reddick and Byron while Hamlin and Kurt Busch slipped back to fifth and eighth, respectively. In addition, Kyle Larson was up to 18th.
Under caution, the leaders led by Kyle Busch pitted for the first time Kyle Busch, Byron, Reddick, Hamlin, Suarez and Wallace. Following the pit stops, Martin Truex Jr. was penalized for speeding on pit road. In addition, rookie Todd Gilliland was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 22, Kyle Busch rocketed his No. 18 M&M’s Toyota TRD Camry away with the lead while Reddick and Byron battled for the runner-up spot. Not long after, Wallace made his way into third place over Reddick and Hamlin while Larson was trying to work his way into the top 15.
By Lap 30, Kyle Busch was leading by half a second over Wallace followed by Byron, Reddick and Hamlin while Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez, Bell, Kurt Busch and Bowman were in the top 10.
Two laps later, the caution returned when Josh Bilicki spun in Turn 3. Under caution, some led by Byron pitted while the rest led by Kyle Busch remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Larson was penalized for removing equipment out of his pit box.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 38, Kyle Busch and Wallace battled for the lead as the field fanned out through the backstretch with fourth-place Briscoe briefly losing momentum in the top five.
Two laps later, Wallace led a lap for himself before Kyle Busch cleared Wallace’s No. 23 McDonald’s Toyota TRD Camry to assume full control of the field.
Another three laps later, Suarez, who overtook Wallace a few laps ago for the runner-up spot and was gaining ground on Kyle Busch, made a move beneath Busch as he issued his challenge for the lead from the fronstretch to Turn 1. Then as Suarez just emerged ahead while pinning Kyle Busch towards the Turn 1 outside wall, Busch slipped sideways and spun through Turn 2 without sustaining any damage as the caution flew.
Under caution, some who did not pit under the previous caution like Wallace and Kyle Busch pitted while the rest led by Suarez remained on the track.
As the race proceeded under green on Lap 50, Suarez launched ahead on the outside lane to retain the lead while Hamlin battled Bowman for the runner-up spot in front of Byron, Elliott and Reddick.
By Lap 60, Suarez was leading by more than two seconds over Bowman followed by Elliott, Byron and Hamlin while Cindric, Reddick, Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney and Truex were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Larson was in 12th behind Joey Logano while Ross Chastain, Bell and Buescher were in the top 15.
A lap later, the caution returned when Corey LaJoie got loose, spun and backed his car against the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, a wreck that was reminiscent of Saturday’s practice session and was enough to eliminate him from the event. During the caution period, the leaders led by Suarez pitted and Elliott exited with the top spot followed by Byron, Bowman, Suarez and Reddick. Following the pit stops, Larson, who got into the wall during the previous restart, was penalized for a second time due to an equipment interference along with Justin Haley. In addition, Cindric made another pit stop to ensure that the wheels on his car were tightened.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 67, teammates Elliott and Byron dueled for the lead for half a lap until Elliott managed to pull his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 ahead of Byron’s No. 24 Liberty University Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 while Suarez was in third place in his No. 99 CommScope Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. Behind, Bowman was in fourth while Reddick overtook Hamlin for a spot in the top five.
Through the first 75 scheduled laps, Elliott was leading by a tenth of a second over Byron followed by Reddick, Bowman and Suarez while Chastain, Bell, Hamlin, Blaney and Wallace were in the top 10. Kurt Busch was mired in 11th ahead of Logano, Stenhouse, Austin Dillon, Truex, Aric Almirola, Erik Jones, Chris Buescher, Chase Briscoe and Gilliland while Larson, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch were mired outside of the top 25.
Fifteen laps later, Elliott continued to lead by six-tenths of a second over Reddick while Byron, Bell and Chastain were in the top five as Bowman fell back to sixth. Behind, Wallace worked his way back to seventh followed by Blaney, Truex and Stenhouse.
On Lap 93, Byron got loose entering the backstretch and fell off the pace due to a flat tire, but he continued to run on the track as the race remained under green.
When the first stage concluded on Lap 100, Elliott captured his third stage victory of the season over Reddick, who settled in second followed by Bell, Chastain, Wallace, Blaney, Stenhouse, Truex, Bowman and Hamlin. By then, Byron was in 11th and Kyle Busch was in 17th while Larson and Suarez were mired back in 28th and 29th.
Under the stage break, the leaders led by Elliott pitted and Elliott retained the lead after exiting with the lead followed by Bell, Wallace, Chastain, Truex and Blaney. Following the pit stops, Kevin Harvick pitted again to address a steering issue.
The second stage started on Lap 107 as Elliott and Bell occupied the front row. At the start, Elliott received a draft from Chastain to retain the lead while Chastain and Bell duked for the runner-up spot. With Chastain making his way into the runner-up spot over Bell, Wallace and Blaney battled in the top five while Truex was in sixth.
On Lap 110, Chastain muscled his No. 1 Advent Health Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 into the lead following a brief battle with Elliott while Bell, Wallace and Blaney remained in the top five. Behind, Hamlin was in seventh followed by Byron and Stenhouse, Kyle Busch was in 11th ahead of Reddick, Logano was in 17th behind teammate Cindric and Larson was back in 20th in between Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola and Briscoe.
By Lap 125, Chastain was leading by half a second over Elliott followed by Bell, Wallace and Blaney while Truex, Byron, Hamlin, Reddick and Stenhouse were in the top 10.
Just then, the caution flew when Wallace spun through the Turn 4 infield and he was quick to nurse his car to his pit stall with the right-front tire flat. During the caution period, the leaders returned to pit road as Elliott retained the top spot after exiting in first.
When the race restarted under green on Lap 131, Elliott and Chastain dueled for the lead until Elliott retained the lead as the field behind scrambled for positions.
On Lap 145, the caution returned when Cindric blew a left-rear tire and backed his No. 2 Menards Ford Mustang hard into the Turn 3 outside wall. During the caution period, nearly the entire field led by Elliott returned to pit road and Elliott exited with the top spot followed by Chastain, Kurt Busch, Truex, Reddick and Erik Jones while Blaney and Larson remained on the track. Following the pit stops, Bell was penalized due to a crew member jumping over the wall too soon while Stenhouse and Gilliland were penalized for speeding on pit road.
On Lap 151, the race proceeded under green as Blaney and Larson occupied the front row. At the start, Blaney held a brief advantage through the first two turns until Elliott muscled his way back into the lead through Turns 3 and 4. With Elliott checking out, Chastain moved back into the runner-up spot followed by Blaney, Kurt Busch and Reddick while Larson fell back to sixth.
By Lap 160, Elliott was leading by seven-tenths of a second over Chastain while Kurt Busch, Blaney, Reddick, Briscoe, Logano, Suarez, Hamlin and Larson were in the top 10. By then, Harvick, Kyle Busch, Byron, Erik Jones and Michael McDowell were in the top 15 while Bowman was in 16th. By then, Brad Keselowski was in the top 20 while Wallace was in 22nd behind Austin Dillon.
Then on Lap 165, the caution flew when Larson got loose and spun his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the Turn 4 infield as he was dodged by Harvick. Under caution, some led by Blaney pitted while the rest led by Elliott remained on the track.
When the race proceeded under green on Lap 170, Chastain used the inside lane to his advantage as he cleared Elliott to lead while Kurt Busch, Reddick, Briscoe and Suarez battled towards the front. Soon after, Trackhouse Racing’s Chastain and Suarez battled for the lead with the former retaining the top spot.
At the Lap 175 mark, Chastain was leading by nearly three-tenths of a second over teammate Suarez while Elliott, Briscoe and Kurt Busch were in the top five. Reddick was in sixth ahead of Logano, Byron and Hamlin while Buescher and Truex challenged spots in the top 10.
Eleven laps later, the caution flew when Elliott got loose and briefly touched the outside wall between Turns 1 and 2 before he spun through the Turn 4 infield. Under caution, some led by Kurt Busch while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.
With nine laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted under green and Chastain took off with the lead ahead of Suarez and Briscoe. Shortly after, however, the caution returned when Blaney hit the apron, got loose and spun as he ignited a multi-car wreck that collected Kurt Busch, Keselowski, McDowell, Byron, Harvick, Hamlin, Gragson, Truex, Harrison Burton, Gilliland and Wallace.
Following an extensive cleanup, the race restarted under green with four laps remaining in the second stage. At the front, teammates Chastain and Suarez battled for the lead until Suarez managed to pull ahead through Turns 3 and 4. Behind, Erik Jones was in third place followed by Briscoe and Stenhouse.
When the second stage concluded on Lap 200, Suarez managed to fend off teammate Chastain and Erik Jones to captured his second stage victory of the season. Chastain held off Erik Jones to settle in second followed by Briscoe, Stenhouse, Logano, Harvick, Reddick, Truex and Bell.
During the stage break, the race was placed on a brief hiatus and the NASCAR community paused for a moment of silence to pay tribute in remembrance of the fallen servicemen and women on Memorial Day weekend. When the field returned to pit road for service, Suarez retained the lead after exiting with the top spot followed by Chastain, Briscoe, Erik Jones, Reddick and Harvick. Back on the track, however, names like Logano, Kyle Busch, Truex, Hamlin and Bell chose to restart at the front without pitting.
The third stage started on Lap 208 as Logano and Truex, both of whom did not pit, occupied the front row. At the start, Logano rocketed his No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil Ford Mustang clear of the field with the lead while teammates Kyle Busch and Truex battled for the runner-up spot ahead of Hamlin and Chastain while Bell slipped to sixth.
Six laps later, Suarez reassumed the lead over Logano as he brought teammate Chastain with him. Behind, Briscoe overtook Truex for fifth while Kyle Busch was in fourth.
Then on Lap 220, the caution flew when Harvick, who was just overtaken by Stenhouse for 11th place, got loose and scraped the outside wall through Turns 1 and 2, an incident that prompted Harvick to express his displeasure to Stenhouse under caution. Soon after, some led by Suarez returned to pit road for service while the rest led by Chastain remained on the track.
Another four laps later, the race proceeded under green. At the start, Chastain retained the lead ahead of Logano while Briscoe, Kyle Busch and Bell occupied the top five.
By Lap 235, Chastain extended his advantage to nearly two seconds over Logano while Briscoe, Suarez and Kyle Busch were in the top five. Bell was in sixth ahead of Stenhouse, Hamlin, Reddick and Noah Gragson while Larson was in 11th ahead of Harvick, Truex, Buescher, McDowell and Erik Jones.
At the Lap 250 mark, Chastain continued to lead by more than half a second over teammate Suarez while Briscoe, Logano, Bell, Kyle Busch Stenhouse, Hamlin, Reddick and Harvick were in the top 10. Meanwhile, Larson and Truex remained in the top 15 while Erik Jones, Austin Dillon and Almirola were running in the top 20.
Two laps later, Suarez overtook teammate Chastain to return to the lead. Not long after, however, the caution flew when Gragson spun his No. 16 Charlotte Knights Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 through the Turn 4 infield. Under caution, the leaders led by Suarez pitted and Chastain reassumed the lead upon exiting pit road ahead of Briscoe, Reddick, Buescher, Hamlin, Stenhouse and the field. Following the pit stops, Kyle Busch was penalized for an uncontrolled tire violation.
When the race resumed under green on Lap 258, Chastain cleared the field entering the first turn to lead ahead of Briscoe and Reddick. Two laps later, however, Briscoe hustled his No. 14 Mahindra Tractors Ford Mustang to the lead from Turns 3 and 4, but Chastain returned the favor and cleared Briscoe for the lead during the following lap. While Chastain, Briscoe and Reddick battled for the lead, Larson rallied his way up to fifth behind Buescher.
By Lap 275, Chastain continued to lead by more than a second over Briscoe and Larson while Reddick and Hamlin were in the top five. Suarez was in sixth followed by Buescher, Logano, Cole Custer and Stenhouse. Prior to this, Bell made a pit stop under green after suffering a flat tire and falling off the pace.
With 10 laps remaining in the third stage, Chastain remained as the leader by a healthy margin over Briscoe while Kyle Busch pitted under green due to an issue to the right rear of Busch’s car.
When the third stage concluded on Lap 300, Chastain captured his fourth stage victory of the season. Briscoe settled in second, trailing by more than two seconds, while Larson, Reddick, Suarez, Logano, Custer, Buescher, Austin Dillon and Hamlin were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Reddick exited with the top spot followed by Chastain, Larson, Briscoe, Custer and Buescher.
With 93 laps remaining, the final stage commenced. At the start, Reddick took off with the lead on the inside lane in front of Chastain while Custer and Larson battled for third place.
With 77 laps remaining, the battle for the lead ignited as Chastain dueled and overtook Reddick for the lead through the fronstretch.
Nearing the final 60 laps of the event, the caution flew due to debris in Turn 1 when Reddick cut a left-tire tire as he limped his No. 8 Cheddar’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 back to pit road. At the moment of caution, Chastain was leading by more than two seconds over Larson while Suarez, Briscoe and Custer were in the top five.
Under caution, the leaders led by Chastain pitted as Chastain retained the lead followed by Larson, Briscoe, Custer, Austin Dillon and Bell.
Down to the final 55 laps of the event, the race restarted under green as Chastain and Larson occupied the front row. At the start, Chastain managed to pull away from Larson and the field to retain the lead.
Then as the field made its way to the frontstretch, the caution flew for a major wreck when Suarez, who made the slightest of contact in front of Briscoe, got loose and slipped sideways in front of the field. As the field scattered, he was hit by Todd Gilliland and Buescher, who looped around the frontstretch grass before his No. 17 Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang went airborne and barrel rolled multiple times before coming to rest on his roof. Despite the incident, all competitors, including Buescher, emerged uninjured.
Following a red flag period of 11 minutes, the race restarted under green with 48 laps remaining. At the start, Chastain took the lead before Larson muscled his way to the front two laps later. Another lap later, Briscoe made his way into the runner-up spot as he went to work to pursue Larson for the lead.
With 40 laps remaining, Larson was leading by nearly eight-tenths of a second over Briscoe while Chastain, Logano and Hamlin occupied the top five.
Ten laps later, Larson extended his advantage to more than a second over Briscoe while Chastain, Hamlin and Custer were in the top five. Behind, Logano fell back to sixth ahead of Kyle Busch, Bell, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon.
Down to the final 20 laps of the event, Larson continued to lead while runner-up Briscoe only trailed by six-tenths of a second. Chastain, Hamlin and Custer remained in the top five ahead of Logano, Bell, Kyle Busch, Erik Jones and Austin Dillon while Truex, Harvick, Almirola, Stenhouse, McDowell, Ty Dillon and Harrison Burton were scored on the lead lap.
Five laps later, Briscoe cut the deficit down to two-tenths of a second over Larson with the latter still leading while the former kept the leader within his sight.
Down to the final 10 laps of the event, Larson retained the lead by three-tenths of a second over Briscoe while third-place Chastain trailed by more than two seconds. Behind, Hamlin and Custer remained in the top five.
With five laps remaining, the battle for the lead ignited as Briscoe closed in and challenged Larson for the top spot. As both went dead even when the field returned to the frontstretch, Briscoe tried to squeeze himself ahead, but Larson retained the lead on the outside lane.
Then with two laps remaining, the caution flew when Briscoe, who made another move beneath Larson in another bid for the lead, got loose and spun from the outside wall to below the apron in Turn 1 as he punctured his tires. Briscoe’s incident was enough for the event to be sent into overtime as Chastain, Hamlin, Custer and Logano moved into the top five.
Under caution, the leaders led by Larson pitted as Larson, Chastain, Logano and Stenhouse opted for a two-tire pit stop while the rest took four tires.
At the start of the first overtime attempt, Larson and Chastain dueled dead even for the lead entering the first turn until Larson cleared the field entering the backstretch. As the field fanned out and scrambled for positions, Austin Dillon suddenly bolted his way towards the front and was able to draw himself even with Larson in a bid for the lead through Turn 3.
Then entering the frontstretch, Chastain and Hamlin drew Larson and Austin Dillon into a four-wide battle for the lead until Dillon made contact with Larson and spun in the middle of the field as he made contact with the wall. In the process, Larson, Logano and Chastain clipped one another and were sent spinning and sliding sideways along with Custer, Truex and Stenhouse while Hamlin escaped with the lead followed by Chastain, Kyle Busch, Harvick, Stenhouse and McDowell. With the wreck occurring just before the final lap could initiate, the field was sent into another overtime attempt.
At the start of the second overtime attempt, Hamlin rocketed with the lead on the inside lane and was quickly pressured by teammate Kyle Busch for the lead while Chastain was losing ground and speed due to suffering front-nose damage from the previous incident.
When the white flag waved and the final lap started, teammates Kyle Busch and Hamlin dueled for the lead dead even until Hamlin managed to pull ahead through Turns 1 and 2. Though Kyle Busch kept Hamlin close to his front bumper, he could not execute a final lap pass for the win as Hamlin claimed the checkered flag by 0.119 seconds to win for the first time at Charlotte and in the Coca-Cola 600 in his illustrious Cup career.
In addition, Hamlin notched his second victory of the season since winning at Richmond Raceway in early April, thus becoming the third multi-winner of this year’s Cup season, and his 48th career win in the NASCAR Cup Series, which placed him in a tie with the late NASCAR Hall of Famer Herb Thomas for 16th place on the all-time wins list in the sport’s premier series. Since winning at Richmond in April, Hamlin had finished no higher than fourth during the following seven events prior to the 600. Mired during the seven-race span were four results outside of the top 20.
Photo by Ted Seminara for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“It’s so special,” Hamlin, who became the newest winner of the 600 since Kyle Larson won it a year ago, said on FOX. “It’s the last big one that’s not on my resume. It meant so much. Man, [I] Can’t thank this whole FedEx team enough. I’ve been a Coke Family driver for 18 years and never have won the Coke 600 before, so this means a lot. Man, we weren’t very good all day and just got ourselves in the right place at the right time. What a battle there.”
Teammate Kyle Busch rallied from his early spin and late pit road penalty to finish in the runner-up spot while Harvick, who endured steering issues and a handful of on-track incidents, came home in third place.
“We didn’t have a good enough day to even be in that position,” Busch said. “Just a strong fight all night long by this M&M’s team and give honor to those that we remember here on Memorial Day weekend. Appreciate the opportunity of being able to do that. We had [U.S. Army] St. [William R.] Theim on [the car] this weekend. [I] Tried to come out with Victory Lane and honor them, but unfortunately, one spot short.”
“That was not pretty,” Harvick said. “I think we went to the back eight times tonight, so everybody on our Mobil 1 Ford Mustang did a good job battling. We didn’t necessarily do a good job with everything else, but in the end, came home with a third-place finish. I knew this race was just gonna be a battle of attrition and forever. Almost six hours. ”
Following his late spin, Briscoe made a late charge to finish fourth, five spots ahead of Larson as Larson rallied from his wreck during the first overtime attempt for a top-10 result while Bell rallied from a late unscheduled pit stop to finish fifth.
“I was driving 110 percent,” Briscoe said. “I should’ve been only running 90 to 100. I just overstepped. It’s a crown jewel race and it was dangling right there in front of me. I tried too hard. Plain and simple. I was able to drive it in so much farther than Kyle [Larson] almost every time into [Turn] 1. I felt like I went to the same mark I had been. As soon as I went in there, I just got super loose…I saw a Coke 600 win right there in front of me, went for it and obviously, overstepped. To have speed like that’s really good. Wished we could’ve gotten the Mahindra Tractors Ford in Victory Lane, but we were fast and I guess that’s all that matters.”
“Long race, thankfully,” Larson said. “The first half was a struggle for all of us, but I was especially frustrated with myself. To rebound from that and have a shot to win there late was something to be proud of. Our team fought really hard, so happy with that. Briscoe’s really good that long run there. [I] Wished we would’ve been just a little bit better so he never would’ve gotten to me to work really hard and ultimately, spin. You’re kind of gambling on tire stuff there. We took two [tires] to try and get ourselves the front row, which we did. I think the four tires were just a little bit better than me and [Austin Dillon] got to my inside there through [Turns] 3 and 4. It was just really tight racing off of [Turn] 4…Again, proud of my Hendrick team. The day would’ve been a lot easier if I just didn’t hit the wall yesterday [during practice].”
“The only reason we got up there is ‘cause everyone crashed at the end of the race and gave us an opportunity,” Bell said. “This Yahoo Camry, just every bit is capable of the guys that beat us. Disappointing day, for sure, because I feel like we had something to contend for the win, but a top five’s nothing to hang our head about.”
Reddick, Stenhouse, McDowell, Larson and Bowman finished in the top 10. Harrison Burton was the highest-finishing rookie candidate in 11th place, thus notching his second top-15 result in the Cup circuit, while Chastain, who restarted on the front row during the second overtime attempt, fell back to 15th with a damaged front nose from his car.
There were 31 lead changes for 13 different leaders. The race featured 18 cautions for 90 laps. This marked the longest-held event in NASCAR history at 413 laps (619.5 miles), which occurred in five hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds.
With 12 races remaining in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series regular-season stretch, Chase Elliott continues to lead the regular-season standings by 34 over Ross Chastain, 37 over Kyle Busch, 53 over Ryan Blaney and 59 over Martin Truex Jr.
Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, William Byron, Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson, Chase Briscoe, rookie Austin Cindric and Kurt Busch are currently guaranteed spots for the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs based on winning once throughout the regular-season stretch. Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr., Christopher Bell, Kevin Harvick and Tyler Reddick occupy the remaining spots in the Playoffs as winless competitors while Aric Almirola trails the top-16 cutline by eight points, Austin Dillon trails by 23, Erik Jones trails by 29, Daniel Suarez trails by 49, Chris Buescher trails by 75, Michael McDowell trails by 76, Bubba Wallace trails by 78, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. trails by 83 and Justin Haley trails by 95.
Results.
1. Denny Hamlin, 15 laps led
2. Kyle Busch, 36 laps led
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Chase Briscoe, two laps led
5. Christopher Bell
6. Tyler Reddick, 19 laps led
7. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
8. Michael McDowell
9. Kyle Larson, 51 laps led
10. Alex Bowman
11. Harrison Burton
12. Martin Truex Jr.
13. Ty Dillon
14. Erik Jones
15. Ross Chastain, 153 laps led, Stage 3 winner
16. Todd Gilliland
17. Aric Almirola, one lap down
18. Cody Ware, one lap down
19. BJ McLeod, six laps down
20. Joey Logano – OUT, Accident, nine laps led
21. Cole Custer – OUT, Accident
22. Austin Dillon – OUT, Accident
23. Kaz Grala, 13 laps down
24. Noah Gragson – OUT, Throttle
25. Daniel Suarez – OUT, Accident, 36 laps led, Stage 2 winner
Next on the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ inaugural event at the World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway in Madison, Illinois. The event is scheduled to occur on Sunday, June 5, at 3:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
NASCAR heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Memorial Day weekend for the 63rd running of the Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 Sunday evening.
The racing action begins Friday when the ARCA Menards Series and the Camping World Truck Series take to the track and continue Saturday with the Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 300.
The weekend is also an opportunity for NASCAR to honor and remember those who have served or are now serving in our military with the NASCAR Salutes program that concludes with the 600 Miles of Remembrance.
This year NASCAR is also debuting the NASCAR Salutes Wall of Honor mural that will allow fans to write messages on magnets that will be added to the mural to create a mosaic that will be donated to a military base.
All times are Eastern.
Friday, May 27
Noon-ARCA Practice & Qualifying (no TV) 1:30 p.m.: Truck Series Practice – FS1 2 p.m.: Truck Series Qualifying – FS1 3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Practice – FS1 4 p.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – FS1
6 p.m.: ARCA Dutch Boy 150 (100 laps) – FS1/MRN
8:30 p.m.: Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 – FS1/MRN/Sirius XM Distance: 201 miles (134 Laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 ends on Lap 60, Final Stage ends on Lap 134 The Purse: $676,097
Saturday, May 28
1 p.m.: -Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 300 – FS1/PRN/SiriusXM Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps) Stage 1 ends on Lap 45, Stage 2 ends on Lap 90, Final Stage ends on Lap 200 The Purse: $1,284,615
7 p.m.: Cup Series Practice – FS1 7:45 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying – FS1
Sunday, May 29 6 p.m.: Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 – FOX/PRN/Sirius XM Distance: 600 miles (400 laps) Stage 1 ends Lap 100, Stage 2 ends Lap 200, Stage 3 Ends Lap 300, Final Stage ends on Lap 400 The Purse: $8,919,032
1. Kyle Larson: Larson started on the pole at Charlotte, led the most laps, swept all four stages and won the Coca-Cola 600.
“You can buy gear commemorating my impressive win in many places,” Larson said. “Just search the internet for ‘dominating fashion.’
“The ‘Hendrick 1-2-3-4’ almost happened again. Soon, the ‘Hendrick Broom’ could become a phrase used for more than just sweeping Hendrick scandals under the rug.”
2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished a solid seventh at Charlotte, scoring his 11th top-10 result of the year.
“We never found the right balance for the car,” Hamlin said. “But if you can finish seventh on a bad day, then things aren’t really that bad. Actually, my status hasn’t changed, because I’m still the points leader, and I’m still the best driver never to have won a Cup championship.
“I’ve never won the Coca-Cola 600. And I’m certainly not the only NASCAR driver to ever be ‘Coked out.’”
3. Chase Elliott: Elliott ran up front all day as the four-car Hendrick Motorsports team battled for the win.
“I employed a new spotter for the Coca-Cola 600,” Elliott said. “Trey Poole is my cousin, and he replaces Eddie D’Hondt, who was indefinitely suspended. Actually, he was definitely suspended. We told Eddie to ‘give it arrest.’”
4. William Byron: Byron came home fourth in the Coca-Cola 600 as Hendrick Motorsports teammate Kyle Larson won convincingly.
“Kyle has lost several races in which he led the most laps,” Byron said. “It almost happened again, but Kyle held on for the win. Clearly, Kyle doesn’t want history repeating itself just as much as he doesn’t want himself repeating itself.”
5. Alex Bowman: Bowman finished 5th at Charlotte as Hendrick Motorsports took four of the top five spots.
“Jay Leno served as one of the grand marshals for the race,” Bowman said. “And fittingly, the race was won by the team that made the right adjustments to maximize car performance after the sun set. In other words, the most important part of the race was the ‘Tonight Show.’”
6. Martin Truex Jr.: Truex finished 29th at Charlotte and now has three consecutive finishes of 19th or worse.
“I had a flat tire late in the race,” Truex said. “And if that wasn’t bad enough, my pit crew had trouble removing the tire from the rim. It’s a helpless feeling sitting in your car knowing you can’t go anywhere. It must be the same feeling Quin Houff gets every week.”
7. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished 10th at Charlotte.
“We had to make an early pit stop due to a loose wheel,” Harvick said. “And speaking of ‘early pit stops,’ the Hunt Brothers Pizza logo was prominent on the No. 4 Chevy. And like loose wheels, Hunt Brothers Pizza is also a reason for having to make early pit stops.”
8. Kyle Busch: Busch started from the rear but quickly established himself as a frontrunner on the way to a third-place finish.
“I was solely responsible for preventing the Hendrick 1-2-3-4 sweep,” Busch said. “It may be the first time I’ve ever taken responsibility for anything.”
9. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski posted an 11th-place finish at Charlotte.
“The Coca-Cola 600 is a long, grueling race,” Keselowski said. “To put it into perspective, 600 miles is approximately one-tenth the distance that me and Penske Racing are apart in contract negotiations.”
10. Joey Logano: Logano finished 17th at Charlotte.
“It certainly wasn’t a banner day for Penske Racing,” Logano said. “Our lack of performance has really opened my eyes to some things, like how much better Hendrick is than us, and how much work we need to do, and why Brad Keselowski might want to leave Penske.
“Trackhouse Racing co-owner and rap superstar Pit Bull was at the race. Let’s be real, though. Kyle Larson led 327 laps and won every stage. He may be the real ‘pit bull,’ because he grabbed the lead and wouldn’t let go.”
History was made under the lights at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 30, as Kyle Larson raced his way to a dominating victory in the Coca-Cola 600 and made Hendrick Motorsports the winningest team in the NASCAR Cup Series. The Elk Grove, California, native led a race-high 327 of 400 laps from pole position, including the final 49 laps, to muscle away from his teammates and the competition before recording the biggest victory for himself and for HMS on Memorial Day weekend.
Qualifying occurred on Saturday, May 29, and Kyle Larson captured the pole position with a pole-winning speed at 180.282 mph. Joining him on the front row was Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in his No. 47 JTG-Daugherty Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE.
Prior to the event, Kurt Busch and B.J. McLeod dropped to the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments.
When the green flag waved and the race commenced, Larson was able to squeak ahead with the top spot as he led the first lap while teammate Chase Elliott battled Stenhouse for the runner-up spot. Behind, a series of side-by-side battles occurred as William Byron battled Kevin Harvick for fourth place while Austin Dillon overtook Alex Bowman for sixth place.
Through the first 47 laps of the event, it was Larson and his No. 5 MetroTech Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE that was leading the field and dominating.
Shortly after, the first round of green flag pit stops occurred as Martin Truex Jr. and Ross Chastain pitted. They were soon followed by Bowman, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, Austin Dillon, Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Chris Buescher, Larson, Elliott and others. During the pit stops, Chastain remained on pit road and his crew pulled the hood up on his No. 42 AdventHealth Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE to address a broken oil pump belt.
With most of the pit stops completed, Brad Keselowski, who was trying to stretch the fuel in his car to the fullest, led six laps before Matt DiBenedetto and rookie Anthony Alfredo led the following three laps. Afterwards, Larson returned to the lead.
With five laps remaining under the first stage, Daniel Suarez made a pit stop under green due to a flat right-front tire.
Back on the track, Larson was able to set sail at the front and cruise to the first stage victory on Lap 100, thus claiming his seventh stage victory of the season. Teammates Elliott and Byron crossed the start/finish line in second and third followed by Harvick and Austin Dillon. Kyle Busch, teammate Truex, Reddick, Stenhouse and Bowman were scored in the top 10.
Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Larson retained the lead following a stellar service from his pit crew.
The second stage started on Lap 107 with teammates Larson and Elliott on the front row. At the start, Larson pulled ahead on the bottom lane to maintain the lead ahead of Elliott and Harvick through the first two turns.
By Lap 110, Larson was ahead by half a second over Elliott while Harvick and Byron engaged in a fierce battle for third place. A few laps later, Harvick prevailed over his battle with Byron as Kyle Busch went to work on Byron for fourth place.
On Lap 132, Elliott, coming off his victory at the Circuit of the Americas, was able to move his No. 9 NAPA Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE into the lead for the first time of the event.
On Lap 140, Kurt Busch took his No. 1 Gear Wrench Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE to the garage after reporting a broken belt issue to his machine, a similar issue that eliminated teammate Chastain from competition.
Not long after, another round of green flag pit stops occurred as Brad Keselowski pitted followed by Stenhouse, Byron, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Truex, Bubba Wallace, rookie Chase Briscoe, Larson, Elliott, Harvick and others. While entering and exiting pit road, Larson and Elliott battled dead even to be on top of one another before the former prevailed.
By Lap 153, Larson returned to the lead after Bell pitted.
Twenty laps later, the caution returned when Kurt Busch, who had returned to the track while multiple laps behind, retired due to an engine failure when smoke billowed out of his car. Busch’s retirement was his third of the season and his seventh finish outside the top 20 through the first 15 events of this season.
Under caution, the leaders returned to pit road and Bowman emerged with the lead following a two-tire pit stop. Hamlin and Logano, both of whom also took two tires, exited in second and third followed by Larson, the first competitor with four fresh tires.
With 23 laps remaining in the second stage, the race restarted. At the start, Bowman was able to retain the lead, but Hamlin moved his No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry to the top spot three laps later. Behind, however, Elliott was quick to move into the runner-up spot followed by teammates Bowman and Larson.
After leading the next three laps, Hamlin lost the lead to Elliott. Five laps later, however, Larson reassumed the lead. From there, he was able to cruise to the second stage victory on Lap 200 and claim his eighth stage victory of the season. Teammates Elliott and Byron settled in second and third followed by Kyle Busch, Reddick, Harvick, Bowman, Buescher, Hamlin and Austin Dillon.
Under the stage break, the entire field drove down to pit road and paused for a moment of silence in remembrance of the fallen during Memorial Day weekend. When the competition resumed, the leaders pitted and Larson was able to retain the lead ahead of his Hendrick Motorsports’ teammates.
The third stage started on Lap 207 as Larson received another strong start to retain the lead ahead of his teammates and the field.
By Lap 210, Larson held a narrow advantage over Byron followed by Elliott, Harvick, Kyle Busch, Bowman, Hamlin, Logano, Reddick and Wallace.
On Lap 231, Byron emerged with the lead, where he went on to lead 17 laps. By Lap 253, though, Larson returned to the lead.
With five laps remaining in the third stage, the caution flew when Ryan Newman lost a right-front tire and pounded the outside wall in Turn 3. The incident was enough to end the third stage under caution, with Larson claiming his third stage victory of the 600-mile event and the ninth of this season. Teammate Byron followed in the runner-up spot and ahead of Kyle Busch, Elliott, Bowman, Reddick, Hamlin, Austin Dillon, Wallace and Harvick.
Under the stage break, the leaders pitted and Larson retained the lead after exiting in first place followed by Kyle Busch. Following the pit stops, Wallace was assessed an equipment interference penalty while Blaney was caught speeding on pit road.
With 94 laps remaining, the final stage commenced as the two Kyles led the field to the green flag. At the start, Kyle Busch challenged Larson for one lap, even leading a lap, before Larson cleared Busch for the lead entering the backstretch during the following lap. In the process, Elliott retook the runner-up spot and Busch got loose while battling Byron for third place.
Down to the final 90 laps of the event, Larson was ahead by half a second over teammates Elliott and Byron, both of whom were battling to keep up with their dominating teammate.
With less than 55 laps remaining and with green flag pit stops ensuing, Reddick led for three laps before Blaney took over the top spot for the following two laps.
Under the final 50 laps, Larson moved back into the lead after Blaney pitted.
Twenty laps later, Larson, who was lapping traffic in front of him, was out in front by a reasonable margin over teammates Elliott and Byron, with Kyle Busch in fourth and Bowman in fifth.
Under the final 10 laps, Larson continued to lead by a big margin over teammate Elliott. With seven laps remaining, Larson’s advantage to Elliott was more than 10 seconds.
With five laps remaining, Larson remained as the leader by more than 10 seconds over Elliott. Meanwhile, Kyle Busch battled and overtook Byron for third place.
When Larson started the final lap of the event, he stabilized his advantage to more than 10 seconds over Elliott. With no challenges lurking behind, Larson was able to come back around and claim the checkered flag for the win.
In his seventh full-time season and career start No. 238, Larson captured his eighth NASCAR Cup Series career victory, his second win of the season, his first victory at Charlotte and his first crown jewel event in NASCAR with his first Coke 600 title. He also joined teammate Bowman and Truex as the only competitors to win multiple races through the first 15 races of this year’s Cup season.
“It feels good,” Larson said on FOX. “It was not easy. I felt like I had to fight off William [Byron] and Chase [Elliott] a lot. It kind of worked out there that last run. [Erik Jones] had to pit and pulled out in front of me. I just towed with him for a while and stretched my lead out. We had a good car there that last run. Awesome, it feels great to be the guy that helped Mr. [Hendrick] break that record finally. This is awesome…Just very lucky that Mr. H was able to put a deal for me. It’s just awesome. I’m living dream, for sure.”
With Larson’s victory, Hendrick Motorsports achieved its 12th Coke 600 title and surpassed Petty Enterprises with the most victories in the Cup Series with career win No. 269, an achievement that left team owner Rick Hendrick beaming on pit road.
“Number one, Richard Petty is the king of NASCAR and he’s done so much for this sport,” Rick Hendrick said. “Man, this is so awesome. All I could think about was the first win, all the drivers. I wanna thank every driver that’s ever driven, ever won a race and the one’s that didn’t win. It’s unbelievable. I can’t really get it in my brain right now ‘cause I just thought something’s gonna happen. But man, what a good job [the drivers] did tonight. I’m just looking forward to the rest of the year when I’m glad [win No.] 269 is over. I’m glad it’s over.”
Elliott, who was making his 200th Cup career start and led 22 laps, settled in second place for the third time this season followed by Kyle Busch.
“Yeah, I was happy for the boss [Rick Hendrick], happy for Kyle [Larson] and [crew chief] Cliff [Daniels], and everybody on the No. 5 team,” Elliott said. “They’ve been kicking ass since February. They deserve to win and rightfully so. They did a great job tonight, ran a great race, made no mistakes and the best car won. Proud of [Hendrick Motorsports]. Man, I feel like everybody’s, like I’ve been saying, been pulling in the same direction and it’s really showing. Just proud of our company and excited as the No. 9 team’s, specifically, for more opportunities ahead and try to get better, and see if we can get dialed in.”
“We had nothing for the Hendrick cars,” Busch said. “Overall, just a really good night for us. This M&M’s Camry was fast. [Crew chief] Ben [Beshore] and the boys did a really, really good job. I appreciate for what all we had, it was enough to be able to go out there, run strong and try to break’em [Hendrick drivers] up. I didn’t want them to finish one-two-three-four again, so at least I could get in the middle of them there, but overall, a good job…We had a solid night tonight. Hopefully, good for the points and hopefully, we can keep this momentum rolling.”
Teammates Byron and Bowman finished in the top five as all four Hendrick Motorsports’ competitors finished in the top five. Austin Dillon, Hamlin, Buescher, Reddick and Harvick completed the top 10.
Keselowski finished 11th followed by Stenhouse, Blaney, Wallace and Suarez. Logano fell back to 17th ahead of Matt DiBenedetto and Briscoe was the highest-finishing rookie competitor in 23rd. Martin Truex Jr., a two-time Coke 600 winner, ended his night in 29th following a late tire issue.
There were 23 lead changes for 13 different leaders. The race featured four cautions for 26 laps.
Denny Hamlin continues to lead the regular-season standings by 76 points over Kyle Larson and William Byron, with Chase Elliott trailing by 92 points.
24. Christopher Bell, three laps down, three laps led
25. Anthony Alfredo, three laps down, three laps led
26. Ryan Preece, three laps down
27. Ryan Newman, four łaps down
28. Justin Haley, five laps down
29. Martin Truex Jr., nine laps down
30. Cody Ware, 11 laps down
31. B.J. McLeod, 11 laps down
32. Quin Houff, 11 laps down
33. James Davison, 12 laps down
34. Garrett Smithley, 13 laps down
35. Josh Bilicki, 18 laps down
36. David Starr, 31 laps down
37. Ross Chastain, 41 laps down
38. Kurt Busch – OUT, Engine
Next on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the series’ return to the West Coast and at Sonoma Raceway following a one-year absence. The race will occur on Sunday, June 6, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1.
NASCAR heads to Charlotte Motor Speedway this Memorial Day weekend as all three series compete culminating with the 62nd running of the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday.
The annual 600 Miles of Remembrance continues the Memorial Day tradition, which began in 2015, with each car featuring the name of a fallen soldier on the windshield as NASCAR honors those who sacrificed all to protect our freedoms.
You can visit NASCAR.com for a photo and biography of each military member that will be represented during the 600 miles of remembrance.
There will be practice and qualifying sessions this weekend for each series as noted below.
All times are ET.
Friday, May 28
11:35 a.m.: Truck Series practice – FS2
4: 35 p.m.: Xfinity Series practice – FS1
5:35 p.m.: Truck Series qualifying – FS1
7 p.m.: Cup Series practice – FS1
8:30 p.m.: Truck Series North Carolina Education Lottery 200 Distance: 201 miles (134 Laps) Stage 1 Ends on Lap 30, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 60, Final Stage Ends on Lap 134 FS1/MRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Saturday, May 29
10:05 a.m.: Xfinity Series qualifying – FS1
11:05 a.m.: Cup Series qualifying – FS1/PRN
1 p.m.: Xfinity Series Alsco Uniforms 300 – FS1/PRN/TSN Distance: 300 miles (200 Laps) Stage 1 Ends on Lap 45, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 90, Final Stage Ends on Lap 200 FS1/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
7: p.m.: ARCA Menards Series General Tire 150 – FS1/MRN
Sunday, May 30
6 p.m.: Cup Series Coca-Cola 600 Distance: 600 miles (400 laps) Stage 1 Ends on Lap 100, Stage 2 Ends on Lap 200, Stage 3 Ends on Lap 300, Final Stage Ends on Lap 400 FOX/PRN/SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Charlotte Motor Speedway Data
Season Race #: 15 of 36 (05-30-21) Track Size: 1.5-miles Banking/Turns 1 & 2: 24 degrees Banking/Turns 3 & 4: 24 degrees Banking/Frontstretch: 5 degrees Banking/Backstretch: 5 degrees Frontstretch Length: 1,980 feet Backstretch Length: 1,500 feet Race Length: 400 laps / 600 miles Stage Length: 100 laps each
Charlotte Motor Speedway NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying & Race Information:
Track qualifying record:Track race (600 miles) record: Kurt Busch, Chevrolet Martin Truex Jr., Toyota 198.771 mph, 27.167 secs. 10-09-14 160.655 mph, (03:44:05), 05-29-16
2020 pole winner: 2020 Coca-Cola 600 race winner: Kurt Busch, Chevrolet Brad Keselowski, Ford 181.269 mph, 29.790 secs. 05-24-20 135.042 mph, (04:29:55), 05-24-20
2019 pole winner: 2019 Coca-Cola 600 race winner: William Byron, Chevrolet Martin Truex Jr., Toyota 183.424 mph, 29.440 secs. 05-23-19 124.074 mph, (04:50:09), 05-26-19
Charlotte Motor Speedway Qualifying Information:
Kurt Busch leads all NCS active drivers in series starts at Charlotte with 39; followed by Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman with 38 each.
William Byron leads all active drivers in the NCS in an average starting position at Charlotte at 8.250 in four starts.
Nine of the 47 NCS Charlotte pole winners are active this weekend. Ryan Newman (9), Kyle Busch (3), Denny Hamlin (2), Kevin Harvick (2), Aric Almirola (1), Brad Keselowski (1), Kurt Busch (1), Martin Truex Jr (1), and William Byron (1).
Newman leads all active drivers in poles at Charlotte with nine (2001, 2003 sweep, 2004, 2005, 2007 sweep, 2009 and 2010).
Harvick is the most recent driver to post consecutive poles (2016 Playoffs, 2017 May race).
The youngest Charlotte Cup pole winner is William Byron (May 26, 2019 – 21 years, 4 months, 27 days)
Eight different manufacturers have won at least one NASCAR Cup Series pole at Charlotte, led by Chevrolet with 34 poles, followed by Ford (30), Mercury (14), Dodge (13), Pontiac (10), Toyota (8), Buick (6) and Plymouth (4).
Charlotte Motor Speedway Race Information:
Eight of the 52 NASCAR Cup Series Charlotte winners are active this weekend. Kevin Harvick (3), Martin Truex Jr. (3), Brad Keselowski (2), Austin Dillon (1), Chase Elliott (1), Joey Logano (1), Kurt Busch (1), and Kyle Busch (1).
Jimmie Johnson leads the series in wins at Charlotte with eight victories.
The youngest Charlotte winner is Jeff Gordon (May 29, 1994 – 22 years, 9 months, 25 days).
The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in Coca-Cola 600 field, producing 11 victories. The first and second starting positions are the most proficient starting positions in the field, producing more winners (17 each or 27.87%) than any other starting position at Charlotte.
Six of the 34 NCS Coca-Cola 600 winners are active this weekend. Martin Truex Jr. (2), Kevin Harvick (2), Brad Keselowski (1), Kyle Busch (1), Austin Dillon (1), and Kurt Busch (1).
Harvick and Truex Jr. lead all active drivers in Coca-Cola 600 wins with two victories each.
Hendrick Motorsports leads the series in wins at Charlotte in the NCS with 20 victories.
Eight different manufacturers have won in the NCS at Charlotte. Chevrolet leads with 46 victories, followed by Ford (31), Dodge (15), Pontiac (8), Mercury (7), Toyota (7), Buick (4), and Plymouth (4).
Top 12 Driver Ratings at Charlotte Motor Speedway
Kyle Busch – 105.9 Chase Elliott – 96.5 Denny Hamlin – 95.0 Martin Truex Jr. – 92.0 Kevin Harvick – 90.8 Joey Logano – 90.3 Kurt Busch – 88.5 Brad Keselowski – 87.9 Tyler Reddick – 87.8 Kyle Larson – 86.8 Ryan Blaney – 86.7 William Byron – 83.2 Note: Driver Ratings compiled from 2005-2020 races (30 total) among active drivers at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Competing in his sixth full-time season in the NASCAR Cup Series, Chase Elliott is within reach of a milestone start. By competing in this weekend’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the reigning series champion and driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will achieve career start No. 200 in NASCAR’s premier series.
A native of Dawsonville, Georgia, Elliott made his inaugural presence in the Cup Series in 2015. By then, he was the reigning Xfinity Series champion driving for JR Motorsports and was named the successor of Hendrick Motorsports’ No. 24 Chevrolet for the 2016 Cup season, replacing four-time champion Jeff Gordon with Gordon set to retire from full-time racing following the 2015 season.
Elliott made his Cup debut at Martinsville Speedway in March 2015, driving the No. 25 Chevrolet SS for Hendrick Motorsports. During the event, however, he was involved in an early on-track incident that damaged his car and broke the power steering. Following repairs in the garage, Elliott returned and finished 38th in his series debut. He went on to compete in four additional Cup races, which included Richmond Raceway in April, Charlotte Motor Speedway in May, Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July at Darlington Raceway in September. His best results during his five-race Cup span were 16th at Richmond and a pair of 18th-place results at Charlotte and Indy. Elliott went on to finish in the runner-up position in the 2015 Xfinity Series standings while Gordon and the No. 24 team won at Martinsville in November and competed for the 2015 Cup title at Homestead-Miami Speedway before finishing in third place in the final standings.
Assuming the No. 24 Chevrolet in 2016, Elliott kicked off his rookie Cup season on a high note by winning the pole position for the Daytona 500, thus becoming the youngest pole winner of the 500 at age 20, two months and 17 days, while recording the 10th 500 pole award for Hendrick Motorsports. During the main event, however, Elliott was involved in an early incident and finished 37th. He rebounded with his first top-10 career result in the Cup Series after finishing eighth at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
By September in his rookie season, Elliott claimed an additional pole at Talladega Superspeedway in April, two runner-up results in both Michigan International Speedway events, seven top-five results and 13 top-10 results, which were enough for him to make the 2016 Cup Playoffs. Finishing third, 13th and third in the Round of 16, Elliott advanced into the Round of 12. His title hopes, however, came to an end following the Round of 12 and following results of 33rd, 31st and 12th. Nonetheless, he capped off the season in 10th place in the final standings and with the Rookie-of-the-Year title. Overall, Elliott earned two poles, 10 top-five results, 17 top-10 results and an average result of 14.6 in his first full-time Cup season.
Elliott commenced his sophomore Cup season, 2017, with his second consecutive Daytona 500 pole award. He went on to win the non-point Can-Am Duel at Daytona four days later. During the 500, Elliott led a total of 39 laps and was leading a pack of cars in the final laps until his No. 24 NAPA Chevrolet SS started sputtering on low fuel under the final three laps. Instead of a possible trip to Victory Lane for his first 500 triumph, he ended up in 14th place.
By the time the 2017 regular-season stretch concluded in September, Elliott and the No. 24 team earned six top-five results and 14 top-10 results, which were enough for him to make the Playoffs. In the Round of 16, Elliott finished second, 11th and second as he advanced into the Round of 12. With results of second, 16th and fourth during the second round, he made his way into the Round of 8.
At Martinsville in October, Elliott made his way into the lead in the closing laps and was on his way to win his first Cup race and claim a spot to the Championship Round at Homestead due in three races when a bump from Denny Hamlin sent Elliott into the Turn 3 outside wall, where he wrecked and fell all the way back in 27th place when the checkered flag flew. The incident was one that led to both competitors confronting one another on pit road following the race and mixed reaction from the crowd. With his titles hopes in jeopardy, Elliott finished eighth during the following race at Texas Motor Speedway. During the next race at Phoenix, he took over the lead late and was on his way to redeem himself until he was overtaken in the closing laps by Matt Kenseth. With Kenseth winning, Elliott finished in second place for the fifth time in 2017 (seventh since 2016) and was not able to earn a spot in the Championship Round. The driver went on to settle in fifth place in the final standings and with 12 top-five results, 21 top-10 results and an average result of 12.0.
For the 2018 Cup season, Hendrick Motorsports switched Elliott’s number to 9, his father Bill’s iconic number, while newcomer William Byron was given the No. 24.
Through the first 21 races of the season, Elliott earned a runner-up result at Richmond in April, five top-five results, 10 top-10 results and was in 12th place in the regular-season standings. In the following race at Watkins Glen International in August, Elliott led a race-high 52 of 90 laps and held off a late challenge from Martin Truex Jr. to claim his first elusive Cup career victory in his 99th series start and return the Elliott name back in Victory Lane in NASCAR’s premier series. As an added bonus, Elliott recorded the 250th Cup career victory for Hendrick Motorsports. He went on to earn three consecutive top-10 results before the Playoffs commenced in September. By then, he surpassed 100 Cup career starts.
Despite crashing out in the Playoff opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he rebounded by finishing fourth at Richmond and sixth in the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course event to transfer from the Round of 16 to the Round of 12. He kicked off the second round in the Playoffs on a high note by claiming his second Cup career victory at Dover. As a result, he secured his spot for the Round of 8 in the Playoffs. Two races later, he claimed his third career win at Kansas Speedway. Following results of seventh, sixth and 23rd in the Round of 8, though, Elliott was eliminated from title contention. He went on to conclude the season in sixth place in the final standings and with 11 top-five results and 21 top-10 results.
The 2019 Cup season started off on a low note for Elliott, who finished 17th after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. Through the first nine events of the season, he achieved a pole, a runner-up result at Martinsville in March and two top-10 results. During the following event at Talladega in April, Elliott led a race-high 45 laps and held off teammate Alex Bowman and the field on the final lap and in the midst of multiple wrecks behind to claim his first Cup victory of the season and the fifth of his career. He went on to win at Watkins Glen in August before the Playoffs commenced.
In October, Elliott claimed his third victory of the season at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course as he transferred from the Round of 16 to the Round of 12. He rallied from a 38th-place result at Dover the following week to finish eighth and second during the next two races (Talladega and Kansas), which were enough for him to claim the eighth and final transfer spot to the Round of 8. Elliott’s title hopes, however, came to an end following three consecutive results outside of the top 30 during the Round of 8. When the final checkered flag of the season flew, Elliott concluded the season with a total of three victories, four poles, 11 top-five results, 15 top-10 results and a 10th-place result in the final standings.
Through the first seven races of the 2020 season, Elliott recorded three top-five results and was ranked in fourth place in the regular-season standings. He rebounded the following race at Charlotte Motor Speedway in May by claiming his first victory of the season. He went on to win the All-Star Race at Bristol in July and the inaugural Cup event at the Daytona International Speedway Road Course layout in August.
Despite finishing 20th in the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway following a late incident, Elliott finished in the top 10 in the following two races and claim his spot in the Round of 12. He earned a spot in the Round of 8 following another victory at the Charlotte Roval. After winning at Martinsville in November, Elliott and his No. 9 team earned a spot in the Championship Round at Phoenix. Despite starting at the rear of the field in the championship finale, Elliott led a race-high 153 of 312 laps and fend off Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin to win the race and capture his first NASCAR Cup Series title in his fifth season in Cup competition, thus becoming the 34th competitor to win a Cup title and recording the 13th title for Hendrick Motorsports. In addition to his first Cup championship, Elliott capped off the season with a career-high five victories, 15 top-five results, 22 top-10 results, over 1,200 laps led and an 11.7 average-finishing result.
Elliott is coming off his first victory of the 2021 season in the inaugural Circuit of the Americas event in Austin, Texas. Through the first 14 events of this season, he has also notched six top-five results and eight top-10 results. He is currently ranked in fifth place in the regular-season standings.
Through 199 previous Cup starts, Elliott has achieved one championship, 12 career victories, nine poles, 65 top-five results, 104 top-10 results and an average result of 13.3.
Elliott is slated to make his 200th Cup career start at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 30, with the event scheduled to occur at 3 p.m. ET on FOX.
1. Kevin Harvick: Harvick finished fifth in the Coca-Cola 600 and remains atop the points standings with a 23 point lead over Joey Logano.
“Chase Elliott must be devastated,” Harvick said. “And it shows. Even with the specter of Coronavirus all around us, he still can’t ‘mask’ his disappointment.”
2. Joey Logano: Logano won Stage 3 and finished 13th at Charlotte.
“I turned 30 on Sunday,” Logano said. “NASCAR officials gave me a pit road speeding penalty for my birthday, apparently.”
3. Alex Bowman: Bowman won Stages 1 and 2 at Charlotte, but faded late and finished 19th. He is third in the points standings, 25 behind Kevin Harvick.
“Chase Elliott might be a little upset at crew chief Alan Gustafson for the decision to pit,” Bowman said. “I hear Gustafson came to Chase’s hauler to console him. Chase was having none of it. He told Alan to ‘Get out.’ And, most importantly, he told him to ‘Stay out!’”
4. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski stayed out on a caution with two laps remaining and held off Jimmie Johnson to win the Coca-Cola 600.
“I’d like to thank my team,” Keselowski said, “as well as the fans. I’d also like to thank the ‘man upstairs.’ That’s what I call the person sitting atop Chase Elliott’s pit box who made the decision to pit.”
5. Chase Elliott: Elliott pitted with the lead when a caution flew with two laps remaining, a decision that ultimately cost him the win. A dejected Elliott finished second.
“We blew that,” Elliott said. “It was such a bad decision, I gave myself the finger.
“We thought pitting was definitely the right call, but it turned out to be one of the dumbest moves we’ve made. No matter how you look at it, it was a ‘no brainer.’”
6. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished 29th, seven laps down, after a disastrous start in Charlotte.
“I had a rough start to my night,” Hamlin said. “I had to pit before the green flag because my ballast weights fell out. My response was, ‘Weight! What?’
“On the bright side, I’ve already got two wins this season. So, mask or no mask, it’s easy to ‘put on a happy face.’”
7. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished third at Charlotte, posting his second top-five of the season. He is seventh in the points standings, 79 out of first.
“Charlotte’s race was called the ‘Coca-Cola 600,” Blaney said. “When I looked into the stands, however, I thought ‘Coke Zero.’”
8. Aric Almirola: Almirola finished 15th at Charlotte.
“Kyle Larson won the World Of Outlaws race on Saturday night in Missouri,” Almirola said. “Earlier this year, he lost big in the ‘Words Of Outlaws.’”
9. Kyle Busch: Busch came home fourth in the Coca Cola 600
“It was an eventful week for Chase Elliott and his right arm,” Busch said. “First, I wrecked him in Darlington and he gives me the finger. Then, in Charlotte, he loses the race by his own hand.”
10. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished second at Charlotte, but was disqualified after failing post-race inspection and relegated to last place.
“As Kyle Busch might say,” Johnson said, “you can’t fix this and have ice cream later. But if I were to have ice cream, it would definitely be from DQ.”
A major penalty was assessed to Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry driven by Denny Hamlin at the conclusion of the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
According to the NASCAR Rule Book, Hamlin’s No. 11 team was found to have violated Safety Section 12.5.2.7.4.d Minimum Safety Penalty Options that referred to the loss/separation of added ballast from a racing vehicle during a race, qualifying or practice session.
As a result, Hamlin’s crew chief Chris Gabehart, car chief Brandon Griffeth and engineer Scott Simmons have been suspended for the next four NASCAR Cup Series races through June 10. With Joe Gibbs Racing opting to not appeal the penalty, race engineer Sam McAulay will serve as Hamlin’s interim crew chief, beginning on May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In addition, veteran Eric Phillips will serve as Hamlin’s car chief while Scott Eldridge will join the team as a mechanic. The penalty came with no points loss for Hamlin and he is still in eighth in the Cup Series regular-season standings, 81 points behind leader Kevin Harvick, with two wins in 2020.
During the pace laps for the 600-mile event, a chunk of ballast (tungsten weight) slipped off the side rails of Hamlin’s car following a puff of smoke and came to rest near the exit of pit road on the racing surface. Hamlin was slated to start the main event in 13th, but he surrendered his starting spot to nurse his car to pit road and have his crew replace the component. He was unable to start the race with the rest of the field on the lead lap. By the time Hamlin returned on track, he was eight laps behind the leaders and fell back as far as nine laps behind. He would, ultimately, finish 29th, seven laps down.
Hamlin, along with his fellow competitors, will return on track for the next scheduled Cup Series event at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the Alsco Uniforms 500, on Wednesday, May 27, at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.
After qualifying fifth, rookie Tyler Reddick scored an eighth-place finish in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway Sunday night in his No. 8 Richard Childress Chevrolet.
This continues a strong showing since the season resumed at Darlington Raceway where he finished seventh and 13th giving him two top-10 finishes and a top-15 in the last three races. It also moved him to 16th place in the standings, the cutoff for inclusion into the Playoffs.
The Richard Childress Racing driver spoke about his goals last week as he looked ahead to Charlotte.
“We’re right on the bubble (for 16-member playoff) so I’m going to stay focused and try to stay inside the top 16 or go for a win. That’s going to be my focus,” he said. “We probably could have had a top 10 (on Wednesday) if the race would have gone back to green (after Elliott’s crash), but we fought back from being as far back as 30th and when you’re running against the best of the best you’re not going to pass them all.”
Mission accomplished.
At the conclusion of the Coca-Cola 600, Reddick said, “I’m proud of the effort our No. 8 Alsco Uniforms Chevrolet team gave tonight. We fought hard all night to make our car better, and we took a gamble at the end, which almost paid off for us. The track just didn’t do quite what I hoped it would do tonight, but we still found a way to get a top 10 out of the race.”
While making the Playoffs may seem unlikely for the 24-year-old in his first season in the series, he is no stranger to winning. He has earned two Xfinity Series championships, one with JR Motorsports in 2018 and one with RCR last year.
Reddick is also aware that he has much to learn but is determined to make the most of each opportunity.
“I learned a lot tonight that I think we can take into account when we return to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Wednesday to help with our long run handling and speed. This is definitely a finish we can build on; 400 laps and 600 miles are done, and we’ll be ready to come back on Wednesday night.”
The Cup Series returns to Charlotte Motor Speedway Wednesday night for the Alsco Uniforms 500 at 8 p.m. on FS1.
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