Ross Chastain, the chef's surprise in Kansas

We didn't necessarily imagine him at such a party in Kansas! Ross Chastain, who didn't manage to get among the qualifiers in the playoffs, won this Sunday after a very controlled end to the race, against William Byron (Hendrick Motorsports), one of the championship favorites. The drivers not in the playoffs had a field day in the second half of the event, with Chastain battling in particular against Kyle Busch (Richard Childress Racing) and Martin Truex Jr. (Joe Gibbs Racing) for the victory during many laps.

For Chastain, the win represents exactly what the young Trackhouse team is trying to do in NASCAR, move the lines: “For us, for our team, that’s really what we’re here for in the Cup Series. Justin Marks and Pitbull founded Trackhouse for that, to be disruptive. There were times this year when we couldn’t have been disruptive on the track. karting next to Darlington Raceway, so in Cup, don't even imagine! It was really difficult, I wasn't sure I had what it took after qualifying, but the car got better as it went on, the more rubber on the track the better it went."

Busch seemed to finally be able to take some positives from a so-far nightmare 2024 season. But with forty laps to go, while leading the race, Busch spun while trying to lap Chase Briscoe (Stewart-Haas Racing), coming out of Turn 2. Busch said he may have pushed a little too hard to pass a less-than-cooperative Briscoe in the closing laps. The No. 8 Chevrolet driver is still seeking his first win of the year, which would bring his career-high 19 consecutive seasons with at least one win.

Larson and Reddick lose feathers

Christopher Bell (Joe Gibbs Racing) was undoubtedly the man to beat this Sunday, but a contact with the wall in the first segment made him lose a good part of his pace. The driver of the #20 was still able to finish in seventh place, allowing him to remain third in the playoffs. As in the first round of the playoffs, Kyle Larson (Hendrick Motorsports) has already lost a good part of the lead he had before this Kansas event, finishing in 26th place. The Californian also hit the wall at the start of the race, in a harder way than Bell, but he still has a 14-point lead over the eighth and final qualifying spot for the third round, currently held by Joey Logano (Team Penske). For Tyler Reddick (23XI Racing), the situation is even more difficult, since he reached the finish in 25th place, and is now ninth in the playoffs, and therefore in danger. Daniel Suárez (Trackhouse Racing), Chase Briscoe (Stewart-Haas Racing) and Austin Cindric (Team Penske) are the three other drivers currently in danger of elimination before the next two rounds. See you this weekend at Talladega for a race that promises to be as undecided as ever!

Kansas – Ranking

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