Janice R. Andrews
Tennessee, Nashville – After overcoming a rain delay and a race record five overtime restarts, Joey Logano secured his first victory of the season in Nashville’s thrilling and chaotic NASCAR Cup Series race. A track record 16 cautions caused the race, originally scheduled for 400 miles, to stretch to an arduous 331 circuits on the 1.33-mile course.
Logano’s Unwavering Will
Amidst multiple cautions in the race’s last stage, two-time Cup Series winner Logano was able to extend his fuel for 110 laps. A determined Tyler Reddick was beaten by him as he started from the front on the final restart, and Zane Smith finished in second place.
With this win, Logano not only ensures his first-ever playoff berth but also joins Team Penske colleagues Ryan Blaney and Austin Cindric, who had already guaranteed their spots through wins this season. With just two top-five and five top-10 results, Logano was 14th in points going into this race.
An Eventful and Dramatic Day
The race started earlier than 3 p.m. local time, but rain delays brought on by thunderstorms caused it to end almost 8:15 p.m. Debate over whether NASCAR should implement a rule similar to IndyCar’s, which ends races at their claimed distance, was sparked by the lengthy delays and restarts, which brought attention to the controversial topic of limitless green-white-checker restarts.
Due to Austin Cindric’s spin on Lap 298 that resulted in the first overtime restart, the final laps were chaotic. Ross Chastain was leading Denny Hamlin at that moment, but things became rather dramatic when Kyle Larson tried to force Hamlin into the first bend, which led to a crash with Chastain and another restart.
Fuel and Disappointment
As the overtimes mounted, Logano took the lead and Hamlin and the other leaders had to pit for fuel. The leaders did everything they could to maintain their lead and conserve gasoline, but the repeated restarts depleted their supplies. Josh Berry’s crash forced another restart of the race, the fourth one having occurred.
NASCAR’s existing points and overtime system may need to be reevaluated in light of the teams’ and drivers’ aggressive racing and extreme fuel usage during the late restarts. Even while the race was thrilling till the end, there were a lot of collisions and long delays, which made many wonder if such a drawn-out and disorganised finish was really necessary.
Christopher Bell’s Letdown
After crashing out of the third stage, Christopher Bell, who had the strongest car and had won the first two, had his aspirations crushed. Before his car broke away and he crashed on Lap 227, Bell had been leading for 131 laps. He placed 36th in spite of his excellent performance.
With three races left before the playoffs and Hamlin failing to secure a victory, Bell, Hamlin, Larson, and William Byron are still in a tie for the lead in the Cup Series.
Final Race Results
- Joey Logano
- Zane Smith
- Tyler Reddick
- Ryan Preece
- Chris Buescher
- Ryan Blaney
- Bubba Wallace
- Kyle Larson
- Daniel Hemric
- Noah Gragson
- AJ Allmendinger
- Denny Hamlin
- Justin Haley
- Alex Bowman
- Austin Cindric
- Carson Hocevar
- Todd Gilliland
- Chase Elliott
- William Byron
- Corey LaJoie
- Chase Briscoe
- Daniel Suarez
- Ty Gibbs
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Brad Keselowski
- Josh Berry
- Kyle Busch
- Harrison Burton
- Corey Heim
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- John Hunter Nemechek
- Austin Dillon
- Ross Chastain
- Erik Jones
- Michael McDowell
- Christopher Bell
- Riley Herbst
- Chad Finchum
The intense race at Nashville showcased the skill and resilience of NASCAR drivers, and Logano’s victory adds another thrilling chapter to the 2024 season.
