HAMPTON, Ga. — In a thrilling finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Christopher Bell secured victory in the NASCAR Cup Series, narrowly beating out Carson Hocevar and Kyle Larson during overtime on Sunday. Bell, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing in his Toyota, only led during the final lap and managed to maintain a slight advantage on the outside when a caution flag was waved due to a collision involving Josh Berry.
“The last lap of the race was our best,” Bell remarked following his win. The Oklahoma native, now 30 years old, has celebrated a total of 10 career victories in the Cup Series.
Before the overtime drama unfolded, Austin Cindric was leading in his Team Penske Ford until he and Daytona 500 champion William Byron collided with just three laps to go, precipitating the overtime.
Kyle Busch, who finished in seventh place, continued to face challenges in his pursuit of breaking a winless streak in the Cup Series. Although Busch triumphed in the Atlanta Truck Series race on Saturday, he is still seeking his first Cup win since 2023, which also ended his remarkable streak of 19 years with at least one win in the series.
Kyle Larson has had a rough time at Atlanta, having failed to finish four of the last six races there and being involved in accidents during each of those. However, following a 17th-place qualification, Larson, the 2021 Cup champion, managed to climb back and win the second stage of the race.
In a series of incidents, Chase Elliott, running in the top 10, crashed his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet into the wall and subsequently hit Brad Keselowski’s RFK Racing Ford, bringing both of their races to an early end. Elliott ultimately placed 18th in the race.
Daniel Suarez, who had previously captured the checkered flag in a thrilling finish against Blaney Kyle Busch earlier this year, saw his hopes dashed in a seven-car pile-up during the early part of the third stage. Other drivers caught in this incident included Cole Custer, Ty Gibbs, Cody Ware, Noah Gragson, and JJ Yaley.
Ryan Blaney was a contender but spun out late in the race, triggering a caution flag. Despite the setback, he rebounded to finish fourth.
In a light-hearted moment, Billy Gibbons, the lead guitarist and vocalist for the rock band ZZ Top, served as the grand marshal, enthusiastically giving the command for drivers to start their engines.
In another notable development, 23XI Racing announced a multi-year arrangement with Corey Heim, who is set to step into the role of a development driver. Heim will participate in a limited number of Cup Series races in the No. 67 Toyota and compete in Xfinity races, starting with an event at Circuit of the Americas next week. His initial Cup race under this new agreement is scheduled for May 11 at Kansas Speedway. Last year, Heim made three Cup starts for 23XI and recently celebrated a Truck Series victory at Daytona, although he finished 23rd in Saturday’s Truck Series race in Atlanta.
Looking ahead, the Cup Series will head to Austin, Texas next Sunday to compete at the Circuit of the Americas.
