The first race of the third round of NASCAR The Cup Series playoffs have proven difficult for several championship contenders, but not for Joey Logano, who took home aces Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Logano won the South Point 400, becoming the first driver to earn a spot in the championship race. The two-time series champion edged Christopher Bell by 0.662 seconds to the checkered flag after starting 10th. Bell started on pole and won stage 2, while finishing second in the first stage.
The last two races have been crazy for Logano, who was the last playoff driver to advance to third round. The Team Penske driver only reached the round of 16 after Alex Bowman was disqualified following last week’s race in Charlotte. Logano is now assured of a chance to chase his third championship in the last seven seasons, having won the Cup Series title in 2018 and 2022.
“It’s an incredible turn of events compared to what happened at the end of last weekend and what it was like on Sunday night – a few hours after the race and into this Sunday. “It’s just amazing. Things change, but what a team I have,” Logano said.
“Everyone has to do it, so we are in Championship 4 again,” Logano continued. “I’m so proud of this team. We’re just finding a way and that’s what I’m most proud of. I said going into this game this week that we could be the underdogs, but I don’t think so more. .”
On the other end of the spectrum, three playoff drivers saw Lady Luck turn against them in Las Vegas, with Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney each involved in crashes on Lap 90 after the Stage 2 restart .
Elliott made contact with Martin Truex Jr. and picked up Reddick and Brad Keselowski. Reddick bore the brunt of the incident, with his No. 45 Toyota 23XI Racing spinning across the infield and back onto its hood before flipping over again. While Reddick somehow managed to escape his injury and return the car to pit road, the damage to the vehicle was too extensive to repair and Reddick’s race was over. He finished 35th out of 37 drivers
Elliott also suffered significant damage but was able to remain in the race, although the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports team was forced to take the Chevrolet back to the garage for repairs a few laps later. Elliott eventually resumed racing, finishing 37 laps in 33rd place.
Blaney was not involved in this incident, but crashed further back in the pack on the same lap, hitting the wall hard after spinning while trying to avoid contact. Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske crew was able to repair his Ford, but Blaney finished 32nd with eight laps to go.
After Logano and Bell, Daniel Suarez, eliminated last weekend in Charlotte, finished third. William Byron, who is still in contention for the championship, finished fourth, followed by Hendrick teammate Bowman in fifth. Truex, Ross Chastain, playoff driver Denny Hamlin, John Hunter Nemechek and Chris Buescher round out the Top 10.
POINT SOUTH 400: See full results from Sunday’s race in Las Vegas
The playoffs will now be held at Homestead-Miami Speedway next Sunday before the final playoff race in two weeks at Martinsville Speedway. After Martinsville, the playoff field will be cut in half, leaving the final four in contention for the championship on Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway.
This article was originally published on USA TODAY: Joey Logano beats Christopher Bell to win NASCAR Las Vegas playoff race
