Ally 400: Ross Chastain smashes winless streak at Nashville

After more than a year of winlessness, 2022 vice champion Ross Chastain scores his first win of the year at the Nashville Superspeedway. 

The Trackhouse driver asserted himself in qualifying as one to watch during the weekend, as he scored his and his team’s first career pole position. The Florida driver would jump out in front of 23XI’s Tyler Reddick and lead the first stint of laps on the day.

On lap 61, Reddick caught Chastain while the #1 was fighting with the lapped #42 of Gragson. The #45 would cut down to the inside at the midpoint of the backstretch and take the lead going into the 3rd turn. Chastain would keep Reddick in sight but the driver of the #45 cruised ahead for the checkered flag in the first stage. 

Stage One Results:

1. #45
2. #1
3. #24
4. #19
5. #11
6. #9
7. #8
8. #5
9. #20
10.  #16

The race would restart on lap 97 with Chastain at the helm and he, Truex and Byron fought for the lead in a threewide formation for the laps following the restart, before Truex settled into the top spot. 

The first caution for cause of the race would be thrown during a round of green flag pit stops. Tyler Reddick, who was running 2nd, would suffer from a loose wheel in turn 4, causing him to lose control and spin into the mouth end of pit road. He suffered no damage and Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski took over the top 2 spots. 

Lap 147 saw the restart, led by the JGR duo of Hamlin and Truex. However, Keselowski in the #6 would stack up the field, sending the #8 of Busch and the #12 of Blaney spinning into the grass. Busch was able to gather up his spin but the #12 was sent head-on into the inside wall, ending his race at that moment. 

The race restarted again on lap 153 with Denny Hamlin managing to get the better of his Gibbs teammate and take the lead of the race, while Truex remained in a close second place. The driver of the #19 would try to run the #11 down before the end of the second stage but to no avail, Denny Hamlin won stage 2.

Stage Two Results:

1. #11
2. #19
3. #1
4. #24
5. #20
6. #23
7. #9
8. #16
9. #4
10.  #43

Hamlin led the opening portion of stage 3 but the JGR driver was quickly hunted down by Chastain and, with 70 to go, the driver of the #1 took the lead from the #11. 

Hamlin’s teammate Truex would continue to peck and pester at Chastain’s lead in the closing laps of the race, but in the end it was all for naught. As Ross Chastain ran away for his first win of the 2023 campaign, with Truex in a close second. 

Hamlin wound up 3rd after the checkered flag, followed by the Hendrick duo of Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson. Erik Jones would score his 3rd top 10 in a struggle of a year for LMC, and Kyle Busch would recover from his earlier accident for a 10th place finish. 

Featured Image Credits: NASCAR On Twitter