Kyle Larson got the best of rookie Chase Elliott on the day’s final restart Sunday at Michigan International Speedway, leading the last 10 laps to record his 1st career Sprint Cup victory. Larson was ready to pounce when the green flag flew for the final time while Elliott briefly spun his tires, opening the door for Larson to drive his #42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet straight into Gatorade Victory Lane.
The winning margin over Elliott was 1.4 seconds. Brad Keselowski, the only Michigan driver in the 40 car field, finished 3rd. But his #2 Team Penske Ford failed post-race inspection, with any penalties likely to be announced at mid-week. Rookie Ryan Blaney grabbed 4th place with Kevin Harvick completing the top 5. Pole sitter Joey Logano led 24 laps and finished 10th in his bid for a season sweep on the 2 mile Irish Hills oval after winning in June.
Larson led a race-high 41 laps in helping to give Chevrolet a one-two sweep. Elliott drove his #88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet to second-place finishes in both Sprint Cup Series events at M-I-S in 2016. Larson’s first Cup Series win comes in his 99th start and gives team owner Chip Ganassi just his 2nd Michigan victory. The first one came 15 years ago with Sterling Marlin behind the wheel.
Larson’s victory capped an historic weekend for NASCAR during which 1st time winners celebrated in each of the sanctioning body’s 3 national series: Brett Moffitt in the Camping World Truck Series, Michael McDowell (X-FINITY) and then Larson on Sunday in Michigan.
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– story by John Singler
www.mrn.com
Concord, NC
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