Who knew NASCAR at Gateway would have so much drama. Joey Logano took the checkered flag at Gateway today. Illinois was more than happy to host the Cup Series as they packed out the seats. It was a sold-out crowd that was given plenty of entertainment, good racing, and a fun result.
The beginning of the race went by quickly. Chase Briscoe couldn’t make the most of his pole position at first. Stage 1 was Austin Cindric. Then, when we got into Stage 2, we saw some action. Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain got into one another and it wasn’t good. Kurt Busch won the second stage in the end with some solid driving.
Chastain ran right into Hamlin’s rear and that started a whole thing, especially after the No. 1 wrecked Chase Elliott afterward. However, despite the drama and all the extra stuff, Joey Logano stayed true and just drove as hard as he could.
Still, the race went on. We had some cautions that shook up the order, but there were some drivers that wouldn’t be shaken. Among those were Kyle Busch and Logano. These two would not let up off of one another… but with six laps to go, caution. That gave Kurt another chance to get a restart and make a run at the checkered flag, in overtime.
Joey Logano Races to the Finish on the Restart
Clearly, fans loved today’s race. There were many times when the entire crowd at the track was on their feet and waiting for the next moment to pop off. The Hamlin and Chastain drama was excellent. There wasn’t anyone paying attention to the rest of the race, just what was going to happen when No. 1 and No. 11 got up next to each other.
Joey Logano just made the right moves and stayed consistent. I’m not sure that they had any issues whatsoever in this race. Just a solid beginning to end. Another week of racing and another great weekend of results. It was a wild NASCAR Cup Series race and no one knew what was next.
There were 10 cautions, some three, four, and five-wide racing, and a whole lot of fun. Joey Logano takes the checkered flag and his second win of the season.
