FORT WORTH, Texas – After a rain delay that lasted nearly six hours, the race at Texas Motor Speedway got underway Sunday night – and ultimately rain cut it short.
In the end, Chase Elliott was Hendrick Motorsports’ highest finisher in fourth place. Kasey Kahne joined him inside of the top 10 in eighth, and Jimmie Johnson was just outside of it in 11th. Alex Bowman rounded out the organization’s night at Texas, finishing 13th.
Carl Edwards was awarded the victory as the leader when the race was called due to rain with 41 laps remaining.
Below is a look at how the four Hendrick Motorsports teammates fared at Texas in the second race of the Round of 8 in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
KASEY KAHNE, NO. 5 DRIVE TO END HUNGER CHEVROLET SS
FINISHED: 8th
STANDINGS: 17th
RECAP: Rolling off the grid 31st, Kahne began steadily climbing through the field early in Sunday’s race. Within 17 laps he was inside the top 25, and on Lap 40 that became the top 20. Kahne advanced into the top five as he stayed on the track while competitors made green-flag pit stops before Kahne headed to pit road himself. When the field cycled through on Lap 80, Kahne was inside of the top 15. The No. 5 team continued its quick work on pit road during the fifth caution of the race, allowing Kahne to restart inside the top 10 on Lap 149. Kahne fell just outside of the top 10 as the race passed the midway point, and following two cycles of green-flag pit stops, he settled into 14th with less than 100 laps to go. Following a caution, he restarted 10th with 64 laps to go and raced his way to seventh when the green flag waved. Kahne found himself in eighth when a red flag waved for rain with 41 laps remaining – and that is where he finished as the race was called.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 24 KELLEY BLUE BOOK CHEVROLET SS
FINISHED: 4th
STANDINGS: 11th
RECAP: Elliott led his teammates to the green flag just outside the top 10 in 11th, and that is where he remained when a competition caution was called after Lap 28. A quick stop by the No. 24 team allowed Elliott to gain two positions on pit road to restart ninth. He continued to race inside the top 10 through a cycle of green-flag pit stops and multiple cautions, finding the top five for the first time on Lap 138. Just past the midway point of the event, Elliott advanced to fourth, and he managed to maintain that position on Lap 217 after another cycle of green-flag stops thanks to quick work by the No. 24 team. The race stayed green, which meant one more cycle of green-flag stops, but Elliott remained on the track to become the leader for one lap before heading to pit road himself. When the field cycled through on Lap 225, he was running fourth. He bounced between third and fourth place down the stretch, finding himself fourth when a red flag was displayed for rain with 41 laps remaining. That is where he would finish, as the race was called.
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 LOWE’S CHEVROLET SS
FINISHED: 11th
STANDINGS: 1st
RECAP: Johnson started Sunday’s race 19th, and by the time a competition caution was called after Lap 28, Johnson had advanced into the top 15. He continued to push toward the top 10 until he was forced to head to pit road as one of the first cars to make a green-flag stop with a potential tire issue. Still, when the field cycled through on Lap 80, Johnson found himself in ninth. During a caution for debris before Lap 120, Johnson was one of only a few competitors to head to pit road for fresh tires, and he restarted 17th on Lap 121. From there, he got to work, finding the top 10 once again by the halfway point of the race. After another cycle of green-flag pit stops, he moved up to eighth just past Lap 200. With 100 laps to go, Johnson continued to run inside the top 10 in ninth, and on a restart with 64 laps to go he raced his way up to sixth place. When a caution was called for rain with 45 laps remaining, Johnson remained in sixth, though he headed to pit road for four fresh tires in case the race went green once again. That left him in 11th when the red flag was displayed four laps later – and ultimately the race was called, giving Johnson an 11th-place finish.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 NATIONWIDE CHEVROLET SS
FINISHED: 13th
STANDINGS: 31st
RECAP: Starting 16th, it took Bowman just 14 laps to enter the top 10, and by the time a competition caution was called after Lap 28, he had settled into eighth. Quick work by the No. 88 team on pit road allowed Bowman to restart seventh, and he continued his charge before a right-front tire issue forced him back to pit road before other cars made their green-flag pit stops. Though he returned to the track a lap down in 34th, by the time the full field cycled through its own green-flag stops, Bowman was all the way back up to eighth. Still, other competitors had fresher tires than Bowman, so he fell outside of the top 15 for the next portion of the race. He found his footing as the race passed the halfway point, and he settled into 11th just past Lap 200. Following a cycle of green-flag pit stops, Bowman settled into 13th on Lap 225. When the race was red-flagged due to rain with 41 laps remaining, Bowman was in 13th, which is where he would finish as the race was called.