New Hampshire NASCAR: Matt Kenseth wins ahead of Tony Stewart

He took his 38th Cup win by a margin of 1.981 seconds over Tony Stewart, but for most of the 301 laps it looked to be a battle between Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr.

Jimmie Johnson had started the race from pole position but lost the lead to Kyle Busch on the third lap.

Truex managed to wrestle his way past in his Furniture Row Racing Toyota and the lead alternated between the two for a while.

Truex had gearshift issues in the closing stages of the race, which left him permanently stuck in fourth gear.

This proved problematic on the many restarts during the final 50 laps, and so he was down in 16th by the chequered flag.

Kyle Busch meanwhile struggled on the restarts and dropped back to eighth position by the end, while his JGR Toyota team-mate was victorious.

Stewart finished second in his Stewart-Haas Chevrolet after consistently moving up the field through the race, continuing his run of good form that includes a recent win at Sonoma.

Joey Logano was next to cross the line, putting all three manufacturers into the top three. His Team Penske Ford moved up and down the order for a while and was second until Stewart passed him with three laps to go.

Kevin Harvick was often found near the front of the pack, and the Californian was fourth by the finish, giving Stewart-Haas Racing two cars in the top four.

Greg Biffle completed the top five, ahead of Jamie McMurray.

There were seven cautions overall and four of these were during the final 40 laps.

The final yellow came with 16 laps to go as Kyle Larson spun on the back straight in his Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet, which tangled up a few other drivers including Kasey Kahne, Ryan Blaney and Carl Edwards.

Alex Bowman subbed for Dale Earnhardt Jr in the #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, as Earnhardt was suffering from concussion-like symptoms.

Bowman was all set for his first top-10 finish in the Cup series until he cut a tyre in the closing stages, bringing out a caution and leaving him 26th at the flag.

RESULTS - 301 LAPS:

PROVISIONAL CHASE FIELD

On wins: Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, Denny Hamlin, Tony Stewart

On points: Chase Elliott, Ryan Newman, Austin Dillon, Jamie McMurray, Dale Earnhardt Jr