CONCORD, N.C. -- William Byron capitalized on a whopping 13 cautions and three overtimes to finish fourth during a wild race at Talladega Superspeedway on Sunday.
Byron worked his way from a 21st-place start to make a huge run for first place in the final overtime but he was shuffled back in the final turn, regulating him to a top-five result.
Chase Elliott originally finished sixth but was disqualified after he drove over the double yellow line on the superspeedway's apron in the final lap, regulating him to a 22nd-place finish. However, the decision was revoked after NASCAR reviewed the penalty. Elliott finished fifth since the second-place driver was disqualified.
Alex Bowman rallied after he sustained a substantial amount of damage to the front of his Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE from an accident early in the race, resulting in 16 trips down pit road. The driver of the No. 88 machine placed 14th.
Teammate Jimmie Johnson also was involved in a brutal accident and could not finish the race, placing 29th.
Denny Hamlin won the event.
Take a look below to see how the second race in the Round of 12 shook out for the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers.
CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 5th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Elliott began the race in 10th and moved up to ninth within the first turn of the first lap. A caution came out at that time, placing the race under yellow. Elliott fell back to 13th shortly after the race resumed.
- Caution No. 2 fell on the ninth lap and Elliott edged to 12th. He restarted in that spot and moved into 10th before the third caution occurred on lap 12. Elliott jumped to eighth after the third restart and made a huge run in lap 19, going three-wide in the middle lane. He was in 14th when the competition yellow was signaled.
- Elliott had to restart in the back after he received a speeding penalty on pit road. He came thundering back and was in eighth by the 35th lap. With seven laps left in the stage, Elliott made a huge run toward the front and was leading the race. He lost the lead with six laps left in Stage 1 and was in third with five to go. The first stage ended under caution and Elliott placed fifth.
- He won the race off pit road and restarted Stage 2 in first. Elliott slipped to third by lap 66 but was in first again when the sixth caution of the race dropped. He pitted under caution and returned to the track in eighth.
- Elliott moved to fifth on lap 75 but slipped to 10th a few laps later. He quickly rallied and was in second by lap 83, then was in fourth when the seventh caution dropped.
- For the restart on lap 91, Elliott moved up to first. He kept that spot until lap 108 when teammate Jimmie Johnson passed him. Elliott got the spot back and was in first when the eighth caution dropped.
- He restarted in first with just seven laps left in Stage 2. Elliott fell to fourth a lap later and was in sixth with four laps to go. At one point he fell to eighth but fought hard to place fourth in Stage 2, earning valuable stage points.
- The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE pitted for four tires and fuel and began Stage 3 in seventh. He edged to 12th before the 10th caution dropped on lap 148. Elliott pitted and restarted in 18th and jumped to eighth with 30 left in the race.
- Elliott worked his way up to third with 11 left in the race. After moving in and out of the top five, Elliott was seventh when the 11th caution dropped. He restarted in sixth for overtime and moved into first before the 12th caution fell due to another accident.
- Overtime was extended again, and Elliott restarted in first. He was out front when the 13th caution dropped and headed to pit road for fuel, eventually restarting in 13th before the final lap.
- He moved to sixth on the final lap and finished the race in that spot. The No. 9 Chevrolet was penalized for going below the double yellow line at the superspeedway, regulating Elliott to a 22nd-place finish. However, it was announced a short time after the race ended that the call was reversed. Since the second-place driver was disqualified, Elliott placed fifth.
WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 HENDRICKCARS.COM CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 4th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Byron kicked off the race at Talladega in 21st and slipped to 22nd when the first caution occurred in the first lap. He fell further to 30th after the race started up again. Two more cautions occurred before the race was able to fully resume. By lap 17 it was under green again with Byron in 24th. He was in 20th when the competition caution was waved on lap 25.
- Byron restarted in 17th and edged up three spots by lap 33. A caution on lap 58 allowed Byron to climb to 13th and end Stage 1 in that spot.
- The driver of the No. 24 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE began Stage 2 in eighth. He fell a spot to ninth a lap later but was in sixth when another caution fell on lap 68. He pitted for fuel and came back out in 14th.
- Byron surged to sixth behind teammate Chase Elliott on lap 75. He made a move to fourth eight laps later and was in fifth when the seventh yellow of the race dropped. Byron restarted in second behind Elliott on lap 91 and battled for the top spot with Elliott and Jimmie Johnson when the eighth caution was waved.
- He restarted in second with seven laps left in Stage 2. Byron fell to 10th two laps later but battled back to finish sixth in the second stage.
- After pitted between segments, Byron began Stage 3 in ninth. He moved into second by lap 137 and was in that spot when the 10th caution dropped 12 laps later. Byron took two tires on pit road and was fourth on the restart. He jumped to third and was in first with 36 to go in the race, then fell to 17th after he was shuffled back four laps later. He rallied to move into 10th on lap 158.
- Byron jumped into second with 28 to go. He slipped to seventh but followed Elliott’s lead and settled behind him in second with 20 to go. Three laps later, Byron fell to 12th. He worked back up to eighth with 10 to go before another caution forced overtime.
- Byron restarted in eighth and shot up to third before the 12th caution fell, bringing out the second red flag. When the red changed to yellow, Byron headed to pit road for fuel. He returned to the track in 15th and surged to seventh when the 13th caution dropped.
- Byron restarted in fifth and jumped to third. He made a furious run for the top spot and was three-wide on the final lap. He crossed the finish line fifth but moved up to fourth after the second-place car was disqualified.
JIMMIE JOHNSON, NO. 48 ALLY CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 29th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Johnson started in 17th and dropped to 18th when the first caution fell in the first turn of the race. He was in 15th when the race was under green again.
- Two more yellow flags were signaled due to on-track incidences, but the race was underway again by lap 17, which saw Johnson in 21st. He jumped to 17th when the competition caution fell on lap 25.
- Johnson restarted in 15th and was in ninth by lap 34. He fell to 12th a lap later and was moving in and out of the top 15 for the next 10 laps. He was down to 21st by lap 54 but a caution on lap 58 allowed Johnson to finish the first stage in 17th.
- The seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion restarted the second stage in 13th. Johnson was in 12th when the sixth caution dropped. He pitted for fuel and was in 12th when the race was under green. Johnson jumped to sixth on lap 83, putting three Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets inside the top six. He was in eighth when the seventh caution was waved.
- Johnson jumped to fifth for the restart on lap 91 and was in fourth three laps later, rounding out three Hendrick Motorsports Camaros in the top four. With 15 to go in Stage 2, Johnson leapfrogged teammate William Byron for the second spot. He soon passed Chase Elliott to take over at No. 1. He slipped back a couple of spots and was involved in a massive accident, which brought out the eighth caution and the first red flag of the day.
- Johnson needed repairs and headed to pit road. He came back out after the field went yellow but pitted again for further repairs to his Chevrolet. Johnson restarted in 25th and moved up five spots to finish the second stage in 20th.
- Johnson pitted between stages to work on the handling of his Ally Chevrolet and restarted in 27th. He moved to 25th by the first turn, but he needed to head to the garage due to a fueling issue. He returned to the track in 29th and 16 laps down.
- Debris started flying from Johnson’s car shortly after his return, bringing out the 10th caution. His day ended early and the No. 48 team placed 29th.
ALEX BOWMAN, NO. 88 CHEVYGOODS.COM/PATRIOT FOUNDATION CHEVROLET CAMARO ZL1 1LE
FINISHED: 14th
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Bowman rolled off the grid in fourth and edged to third before the first caution dropped on the first lap. He was shuffled back when the race resumed and fell to 11th. The second caution occurred on the ninth lap and allowed Bowman to move into 10th. Barely a lap passed when another caution occurred. When the race resumed on lap 17, Bowman was in 16th. He was down to 22nd by lap 21 and stayed in that position for the competition yellow.
- Bowman restarted in 22nd and was in 15th by lap 53. One lap later he was all the way up to ninth and slid in to eighth with five laps left in Stage 1. Bowman edged to fourth on lap 57 but was involved in the fifth caution of the race, forcing him to pit. He finished Stage 1 in 31st after he needed to pit another time for repairs.
- Bowman was in 26th for the start of Stage 2. He was up three spots when another caution fell on lap 68, allowing him to pit for additional repairs. Bowman was in 26th when the race resumed. The seventh caution dropped on lap 88, allowing Bowman to pit again. He was in 29th when the race was under green and quickly jumped to 23rd.
- After the eighth caution was lifted, Bowman was in 15th with seven laps to go in Stage 2. He slipped back and ended the stage in 21st.
- Bowman pitted just for fuel and started Stage 3 in sixth. He edged to third with 62 to go and was in second a lap later. He lost momentum and settled into 13th when the 10th caution came out.
- Bowman restarted in 22nd and Bowman made a run to settle in 12th with 23 laps to go. He moved up to ninth seven laps later then sixth, but Bowman fell back to 17th when the 11th caution came out.
- The 27-year-old driver jumped to 10th when the 12th caution dropped. After the flag changed from red to yellow, Bowman pitted to change a flat tire and for fuel. On the restart, he was in 22nd and climbed to 18th when the 13th caution flag waved.
- Bowman restarted in 16th and finished the race in that same spot two laps later. However, due disqualifications ahead of him, he placed 14th.