Fontana NASCAR: Kyle Larson wins for Ganassi
Kyle Larson took the NASCAR Cup race victory at Fontana after gambling on a late pitstop
The Chip Ganassi Racing driver was in a heated battle with Martin Truex Jr for most of the race, both of them taking stage wins and then scrapping for the lead as the final segment began.
Truex was struggling relative to his rival through Turns 1 and 2, allowing Larson to build a lead.
When a late caution was prompted by Corey LaJoie crashing, Truex stayed out along with Denny Hamlin as most others pitted.
But at the restart Larson was able to make use of his fresher tyres and overtake both even before an incident for Ricky Stenhouse Jr brought out another yellow and led to an overtime finish.
Larson made a break at the final restart and secured his first Cup win since Michigan last year, completing a superb weekend that had also included Cup pole and an Xfinity Series victory.
Truex dropped to fourth place as Brad Keselowski and Clint Bowyer surged through having also pitted for fresh rubber.
Keselowski's second place for Penske completed a comeback drive following an early clash with Jimmie Johnson, with use of the free pass and alternative pitstop strategies bringing him back into contention.
Joey Logano also surged into the lead battle amid the late restarts, ending up fifth, while Ganassi had two cars in the top six as Jamie McMurray finished sixth ahead of top rookie Daniel Suarez.
Kyle Busch fell back in the final part of the race after fighting for the lead for a spell and finished eighth, with Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott completing the top 10.
Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 202 |
3 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 202 |
4 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 202 |
5 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 202 |
6 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
7 | Daniel Suarez | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 202 |
8 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 202 |
9 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 202 |
10 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 202 |
11 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
12 | Erik Jones | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 202 |
13 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 202 |
14 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 202 |
15 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
16 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 202 |
17 | A.J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
18 | Ty Dillon | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 202 |
19 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 202 |
20 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 202 |
21 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 202 |
22 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 202 |
23 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 202 |
24 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 201 |
25 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 201 |
26 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 200 |
27 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 200 |
28 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 200 |
29 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 200 |
30 | Corey LaJoie | BK Racing | Toyota | 200 |
31 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 199 |
32 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 199 |
33 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 198 |
34 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Toyota | 197 |
35 | Timmy Hill | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 193 |
36 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 184 |
37 | Gray Gaulding | BK Racing | Toyota | 173 |
38 | Derrike Cope | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 117 |
39 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport / TMG | Chevrolet | 99 |
LEADING CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
Pos | Driver | Points |
---|---|---|
1 | Kyle Larson | 243 |
2 | Chase Elliott | 214 |
3 | Martin Truex Jr. | 205 |
4 | Brad Keselowski | 179 |
5 | Joey Logano | 174 |
6 | Jamie McMurray | 162 |
7 | Ryan Blaney | 157 |
8 | Clint Bowyer | 143 |
9 | Kevin Harvick | 137 |
10 | Kyle Busch | 136 |
11 | Ryan Newman | 123 |
12 | Denny Hamlin | 123 |
13 | Kasey Kahne | 122 |
14 | Kurt Busch | 118 |
15 | Erik Jones | 116 |
16 | Trevor Bayne | 114 |
17 | Jimmie Johnson | 109 |
18 | Aric Almirola | 108 |
19 | Daniel Suarez | 102 |
20 | Austin Dillon | 92 |
21 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 91 |
22 | Paul Menard | 87 |
23 | Ty Dillon | 87 |
24 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 86 |
25 | Matt Kenseth | 73 |
26 | Michael McDowell | 66 |
27 | Landon Cassill | 65 |
28 | Matt DiBenedetto | 64 |
29 | Danica Patrick | 63 |
30 | A.J. Allmendinger | 59 |
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