Brad Keselowski hangs on for victory in chaotic Talladega race
Penske's Brad Keselowski took a hard-fought NASCAR Sprint Cup win at Talladega ahead of Kyle Busch in was an incident-packed finish around the famous speedway
Keselowski led into the closing stages and held his nerve despite a late spate of cautions, the first of which occurred with just over 20 laps left.
As the frontrunners ran close, Jimmie Johnson was turned around by Kurt Busch, who in turn spun into Paul Menard and triggered an incident involving more than a third of the field.
Once those without terminal damage were fixed up in the pits, the drivers ran for another handful of laps before the next big crash came during the final laps.
Matt Kenseth was pitched skywards and flipped into the infield barrier after contact with Danica Patrick, who took a hard hit into the wall along with Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick.
Kenseth had enjoyed a solid run until then, having set the early pace from his Joe Gibbs Racing team-mates Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch.
The first caution of the day occurred when Dale Earnhardt Jr was spun across into Hendrick team-mate Kasey Kahne, after making adjustments on pit road that made his car loose in the dirty air.
Earnhardt's day went from bad to worse when he brought out the third caution of the race, after he was tipped into the barrier by Carl Edwards.
The crash put both of them out and ended Edwards' run of Cup race wins.
Keselowski was one of a number of drivers to make aggressive moves during the race and, having bided his time in the middle of the pack, got his reward when a run on Kyle Busch on the high part of the track allowed him to slot in ahead.
Polesitter Chase Elliott showed good pace towards the end but was rebuffed by Keselowski and fell back to fifth in the final four-lap sprint.
That handed Keselowski a clear run to the chequered flag and allowing Busch to secure second as chaos ensued behind between Harvick, Martin Truex Jr and Ricky Stenhouse among others - with Stenhouse rolling into the barrier.
Pos | Driver | Team | Car |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
2 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
4 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
5 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
6 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet |
7 | Clint Bowyer | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet |
8 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet |
9 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
10 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
11 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
12 | Michael Waltrip | Premium Motorsports | Toyota |
13 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota |
14 | A.J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
15 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet |
16 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
17 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
18 | Cole Whitt | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet |
19 | Bobby Labonte | Go FAS Racing | Ford |
20 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
21 | Michael McDowell | Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet |
22 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
23 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
24 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet |
25 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
26 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
27 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford |
28 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
29 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
30 | Brian Scott | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford |
31 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
32 | Regan Smith | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet |
33 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet |
34 | David Ragan | BK Racing | Toyota |
35 | Carl Edwards | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
36 | Matt DiBenedetto | BK Racing | Toyota |
37 | Chris Buescher | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
38 | Michael Annett | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet |
39 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
40 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
- | Ty Dillon | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet |
LEADING CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Pos | Driver | Points |
---|---|---|
1 | Kevin Harvick | 351 |
2 | Kyle Busch | 342 |
3 | Carl Edwards | 337 |
4 | Jimmie Johnson | 329 |
5 | Joey Logano | 316 |
6 | Kurt Busch | 312 |
7 | Brad Keselowski | 300 |
8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 279 |
9 | Martin Truex Jr. | 274 |
10 | Austin Dillon | 272 |
11 | Chase Elliott | 271 |
12 | Denny Hamlin | 269 |
13 | Jamie McMurray | 261 |
14 | A.J. Allmendinger | 232 |
15 | Matt Kenseth | 231 |
16 | Trevor Bayne | 228 |
17 | Kasey Kahne | 224 |
18 | Ryan Blaney | 219 |
19 | Ryan Newman | 219 |
20 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 218 |
21 | Paul Menard | 201 |
22 | Kyle Larson | 197 |
23 | Greg Biffle | 188 |
24 | Aric Almirola | 180 |
25 | Landon Cassill | 170 |
26 | Danica Patrick | 166 |
27 | Clint Bowyer | 160 |
28 | Casey Mears | 149 |
29 | Brian Scott | 142 |
30 | Matt DiBenedetto | 128 |
31 | Regan Smith | 127 |
32 | David Ragan | 124 |
33 | Michael McDowell | 120 |
34 | Chris Buescher | 101 |
35 | Michael Annett | 90 |
36 | Brian Vickers | 86 |
37 | Cole Whitt | 86 |
38 | Tony Stewart | 57 |
39 | Michael Waltrip | 42 |
40 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | 36 |
PROVISIONALLY INTO CHASE SO FAR
Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, Brad Keselowski (2 wins), Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick (1 win)
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