William Byron steals the NASCAR Cup Series show at Texas Motor Speedway with Hendrick Motorsports 300th win in the Auto Trader EchoPark Automotive 400.
A new Round of 12 in the playoffs can act as a clean slate for drivers who struggled in the previous Round of 16. The 12 remaining drivers looked forward to opening the second round of the playoffs at Texas Motor Speedway. This race serves as a great opportunity for teams to have solid finishes as Talladega Superspeedway and the Charlotte Road Course are on the horizon to complete the Round of 12.
Bubba Wallace Leads the Field to Green
Bubba Wallace started on the pole, and he led the opening 42 laps when Austin Dillon spun around in the third turn.
On the following restart, Aric Almirola and Alex Bowman both spun around in the second turn. Bubba Wallace led on for another 20 laps when Kyle Busch spun around in the second turn.
Chris Buescher cycled to the lead while many drivers came down pit road. Chris Buescher was passed on the restart by Tyler Reddick who went on to win the first stage.
The Second Stage Begins with Tyler Reddick in the Lead
Tyler Reddick held his lead for the start of the second stage and led for 24 laps when Corey Lajoie spun around in the second turn. Bubba Wallace cycled back into the lead for the restart, and he retook his control over the field.
Kyle Larson tracked him down and made a pass for the lead 24 laps later. Bubba Wallace continued to drop back as Kyle Larson separated himself from the field and won the second stage.
Kyle Larson Leads the Third Stage to the Green Flag
Kyle Larson flashed his speed to kick off the third stage. He moved away from the field and led for 36 laps when Daniel Suarez spun around coming to pit road. Larson held his lead through another caution involving JJ Yeley. On the following restart, Kyle Larson and Bubba Wallace had a tight battle for the lead. The two were side by side for a few laps. Bubba Wallace took over the race lead as Kyle Larson spun around in turn two.
William Byron Steals the NASCAR Cup Series Show at Texas Motor Speedway
After an immediate caution on the following restart, Bubba Wallace and William Byron restarted side by side with five laps remaining. William Byron pulled away on the backstretch as Bubba Wallace fell back. Byron led the final five laps to secure his victory and spot in the Round of 8 of the playoffs. The victory was significant for Hendrick Motorsports as their 300th all-time.
The Auto Trader EchoPark 400 Results
The NASCAR Cup Series Point Standings
The race this past weekend was not limited to action and drama. Multiple playoff drivers had issues that brought them poor finishes. Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, and Ryan Blaney all had accidents during the race that moved them to the back of the field.
Tyler Reddick was another driver who battled all day to salvage a decent finish. After being a lap off the pace for most of the day, he finished 25th.
Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Busch sit outside the cutline as they head into Talladega next weekend. Needing to gain points is not a good place to be while racing at one of NASCAR’s most unpredictable tracks.