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AJ Allmendinger Top Finisher For Chevrolet At Watkins Glen With Ninth Place Finish

AJ Allmendinger proved to be the top Chevy driver at Watkins Glen, clinging to ninth position, while other Chevy powered drivers fell from the top ten.

Chevrolet powered drivers in the top ten at the end of stage one included Chase Elliott in third, Kyle Larson in fourth, Jamie McMurray in sixth, AJ Allmendinger in eighth, and Kasey Kahne in ninth. Unfortunately, all but the No. 47 of Allmendinger, who finished the stage in tenth, would be relegated to positions outside of the top ten by the end of stage two.

In the third and final stage, Allmendinger made up a position, placing him in ninth place where he would go on to finish. Amongst other Chevrolet powered drivers, the No. 37 of Chris Buescher, the No. 95 of Michael McDowell, the No. 24 of Chase Elliott, and the No. 1 of Jamie McMurray all looked to be top ten contenders at one point, but through a combination of fuel strategy and lack of pace were slowly pushed back through the field to eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth respectively.

At the end of stage three, Martin Truex Jr. took the win, owing it all to a masterful fuel strategy call by his crew chief Cole Pearn. Second was the disappointed Matt Kenseth who needed a win to be guaranteed a playoff spot. The third and final podium position belonged to rookie Daniel Suarez who took the first stage win of his career in stage two.

In the points standings, Chevrolet powered drivers still show a threat for the championship. Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, and Jamie McMurray occupy third, seventh, and eighth in the regular season points standings and third, fourteenth and fifteenth in the playoff standings respectively. Watkins Glen may not have been representative of their overall season performance, but Elliott and McMurray will need a win to solidify their playoff positions.

The next NASCAR Monster Energy Cup race is this weekend at Michigan International Speedway for the Pure Michigan 400, which was won by Kyle Larson last year.

David Cox is a college student that lives for race weekends and merely tolerates all the bits in between. His roots within the cult of Miata run so deep that he is beyond saving.

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