Alex Bowman in the No. 48 Chevrolet Camaro took advantage of a Nascar Overtime finish to take the win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday.
Bowman’s Next Gen Camaro showed muscle throughout the day. By the end of Stage 1, he’d finessed his way to the front from his 13th-place starting position and outcompeted his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, No. 24, for the first stage win.
Stage 2 got off to a somewhat slow start, as a series of cautions slowed the field after the green flag flew. One incident involved Daytona 500 winner Austin Cindric, No. 2, and a separate spin took out Chase Briscoe, No. 14 Ford, prompting a yellow flag on lap 136. Bowman was penalized during his pit stop under this caution for equipment interference, and was forced to restart at the tail end of the lead-lap cars.
Meanwhile, Fontana winner Kyle Larson, No. 5, and teammate Chase Elliott, No. 9, battled back and forth for the race lead. Ross Chastain, No. 1 Camaro, entered the picture, ultimately making the pass for the Stage 2 win.
Kyle Busch in the No. 18 Toyota challenged Chastain as soon as the green flag dropped on Stage 3, but Chastain pulled ahead. A caution came out with 46 to go in response to an issue with the No. 11 of Denny Hamlin – Hamlin botched a shift exiting Pit Road, paralyzing his Next Gen Toyota.
As the laps wound down, two Toyotas held control of the race. Busch led, while his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Martin Truex Jr., threw his No. 19 after him and began to reel him in. However, the fate of the race changed when Bubba Wallace, No. 23 Toyota, and Erik Jones, No. 43 Camaro, spun out together with two laps left, causing a caution. Truex and Busch opted for four tires, while Larson and Bowman took just two, putting the two Chevys out front for the restart.
Vegas isn’t so bad when you play your cards right 🤘🏼 pic.twitter.com/wEuUanrW0w
— Alex Bowman (@Alex_Bowman) March 7, 2022
After batting neck-and-neck during the Nascar Overtime finish, Bowman ultimately bested Larson and put the No. 48 in victory lane.
Busch was clearly disappointed after victory slipped from his hands, and had some choice words for Bowman. “The same [expletive] guy that backs into every [expletive] win that he ever [expletive] gets backs into another [expletive] win,” Busch said.
Bowman has won five of the last 31 Nascar races.
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Comments
Wah,wah,wah, poor Kyle.
Crew Chief won the race with a gamble that paid off big time. Great call. Disagree with ‘backed in win’ statement. They had nothing to lose by taking 2 tires. They out smarted the competition.
Just cry baby bushie doing what he does best. You think he would grow up.
His name is Cryle Busch for a reason! Anything Chevy and Ford can do to Turdota is good with me.
Kyle bush what a cry baby something’s never change
Even if you think he backed into the win (which I don’t ), that’s better than backing into the wall during practice.
Just Karen Busch whining.
I’ve noticed with Bowman that it seems as though he’s just a so-so driver until the later part of the race. I’ve always thought he should be more aggressive but I think he is cautiously waiting for his safest move and then one by one he’s running up front. That’s his style and it obviously works for him, I admire his wit and patience.
Well, he did win the first stage.
Mile and a half tracks are snooze fests, but at least the Chevy’s took it.
Could the tech being used in this “Next Gen” NASCAR Camaro be what’s coming in the 7th gen? So many people are saying that the 7th gen is going away like it did after the 4th gen, but I really hope that’s not true. The 6th gen is such a great handling sports car, but the problem was they never marketed this Camaro, and people who aren’t already Camaro fans had no idea what the 6th gen was capable of.
I’m scrolling the internet every week hoping to hear some rumours of the 7th gen.