CONCORD, N.C. – The road course king strikes again. This time at Road America, marking Chase Elliott’s second win in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season.
Elliott took the lead in the final stage and never looked back, leading the final 17 laps at the 4.048-mile road course.
The Dawsonville, Georgia native has now won seven of the last 11 road course races and owns the record for the most wins at different road course venues with five.
“It was a hot day but a lot of fun,” said Elliott after climbing from his No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevy. “I’m just really proud of our team for overcoming some adversity early and having to start in the back, having good pit stops and a really fast NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet. Just so proud. We’ve had a rough two weeks so it feels really good.”
Varying pit strategies had Kyle Larson running up front for most of the 62-lap event but a spin in the closing laps moved the season’s four-time race winner to 16th on the leaderboard when the checkers were displayed.
Alex Bowman ran a solid race but issues with brakes and a late-race pit stop yielded him to a 22nd-place finish.
William Byron secured the organization's 16th stage win in the first stage of the race but drove off the track in the closing laps that relegated him to a 33rd-place finish.
Take a look below to see how the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers fared at the inaugural Cup Series race at Road America.
KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 16th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- After laying down a fast lap in qualifying, Larson took to Road America from the front row, where he sat on the outside pole next to teammate Byron. The race’s first caution came on lap three and Larson was still in second. He stayed out and reset there but fell to third on lap six after trying to pass teammate Byron.
- The race’s second caution came on lap 11. Stage 1 finished under yellow, and Larson was scored third. He pitted at the stage break and reset for Stage 2 in 11th. The 28-year-old driver re-entered the top-10, running ninth on lap 19. He continued to surge, running seventh by lap 22.
- Larson finished Stage 2 in fourth and pitted at the stage break again, relegating him to 15th. He quickly used his new tires and fuel to move through the field, breaking into the top-10 on lap 38, sitting 10th behind his teammate Byron.
- A caution came on lap 43 and Larson was in ninth. He pitted under yellow and restacked sixth. He moved into third on lap 48 but dropped to 10th after connecting with Bowman on lap 58. He continued to fall before finishing the race 16th.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 1st
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Elliott took to the 4.048-mile road course in 34th but moved through the field quickly, sitting 24th by the end of the first lap. A caution came on lap three and Elliott was up to 22nd, eventually breaking into the top-20, running 19th by the restart on lap four. The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE continued to carry his momentum, running 14th on lap 10.
- He picked up several spots after some of the field pitted before the end of the first stage, breeching the top-10 by lap 11, running 10th. He finished Stage 1there.
- Elliott pitted at the stage break and reshuffled into 14th but moved through the field again, breaking into the top-10 again on lap 22 where he ran eighth. He pitted on lap 26 under green and rejoined the field before finishing stage two in 15th.
- He stayed out and reset for the final stage in second. Elliott took the lead on lap 38 and kept it through the caution on lap 43. He pitted during the caution and restacked fifth. He used his fresh tires and moved back into the lead by lap 45 and managed to take the checkered flag with over a five-second lead over second place.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 33rd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Byron won the pole earlier the day and started the race on the front row with teammate Larson. He took the lead by the first caution on lap three and kept it, winning Stage 1. The 23-year-old driver pitted at the stage break and reset for Stage 2 in ninth.
- Byron used his new tires and fuel to drive through the field and run fourth on lap 22. He continued to push and finished Stage 2 in second. Again, Byron pitted at the stage break and rejoined the field in 18th.
- The Charlotte, North Carolina, native pushed his way back into the top-10 on lap 38, sitting ninth. A caution came on lap 43 and Byron was scored eighth. He pitted under caution and reset in 14th. On lap 49, Byron drove too deep into a corner and ran off track.
- Fortunately, his No. 24 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE did not receive any damage and rejoined the field in 33rd. He pitted under green on lap 50 and reset in 34th before making one more pass to finish the race in 33rd.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 48 ALLY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 22nd
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman started the inaugural event at Road America in 10th. By the first caution on lap three, Bowman had moved into ninth. He stayed out and made one more pass before the end of Stage 1, ultimately placing him eighth. He pitted at the stage break which relegated him to 20th.
- The 28-year-old driver moved up to 14th on lap 22 before pitting under green. He rejoined in 21st and finished Stage 2there. After electing to stay out, Bowman restarted the final stage in seventh. Another caution came on lap 43 and he was scored sixth. He pitted under caution and reset in ninth.
- Bowman pushed his way to fourth by lap 57 but tangled with teammate Larson after driving too deep into a corner due to the loss of brakes. He took damage on his right-rear fender and had to pit for a tire rub. He rejoined in 27th and made several passes in the final laps before finishing 22nd.