Alex Bowman won the final restart and took home the hardware after 400 miles.
The “Greatest Season Ever” traveled to Virginia last Sunday for yet another round of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series. This time, it was Richmond Raceway and it was Alex Bowman who came on top.
Hamlin Hits the Gas
Denny Hamlin felt really comfortable with the early lead as he held teammate Martin Truex Jr. off the top spot for most of the first stage. Lap 31 brought in the first yellow flag of the day. It was a competition caution though, so the field remained intact and headed for the pits.
Restart saw Hamlin regain the lead and get in the middle of a fight for the first Playoff point of the race with Truex Jr. and Joey Logano. Eventually, the FedEx Camry pulled away to get the stage win.
Finding Their Way to the Top
The second set of laps followed the same pace as the first. It was all very smooth, and the same number eleven led the pack. All that changed 142 laps into the race when Ryan Newman got tagged by Austin Cindric entering turn three. Cars dived into the pits after the incident and Truex Jr. emerged with the lead. He wouldn’t have it for long though.
Truex Jr surrendered the lead after pitting alongside Logano, Chase Elliott, and Daniel Suarez. Brad Keselowski took the lead from JGR’s 19 car. Eventually, a pair of Toyotas caught up to him. Guess who? Hamlin and Truex Jr.
A couple of sleepers started showing up near the midpoint of the race. Alex Bowman for one found the fourth spot after an evening of going up and down in the standings. Matt DiBenedetto also found a place in the top 10, finishing stage two in 6th.
Hamlin took yet again another stage point crossing the finish line before everyone else.
Up Front when It Counts
Remember those sleepers we told you about? Elliott was not one of them, by any means. The reigning champion got the wave by, finishing first among the lapped cars. Not a good day for the Napa Chevrolet.
Kevin Harvick put on a bitter cap on a lackluster weekend after going hard into the wall thanks to a flat tire. The main event, however, was bigger than Harvick’s hit. Alex Bowman sneaked up into the leaders with 11 to go and served as a prelude to what can only be described as a “Sprint war”.
Bowman v Hamlin v Logano v Christopher Bell. Drivers went double-wide as traffic moved out of the way with Alex Bowman still on top. No one could catch the Ally 48 car and that. Is how a Chevy spoiled yet another win both for Joe Gibbs and Toyota.
Alex Bowman is your winner at Richmond.
Missed last week’s race? Check it out HERE
Featured Image: Getty Images
