Ross Chastain certainly had a fast No. 1 NASCAR Chevy Camaro ZL1 under him at Nashville Superspeedway, earning his first career pole position ahead of the Cup Series race on June 25th, 2023, and eventually defending the top spot against a pair of Toyota TRD Camry race cars as the laps ticked down for his first win of the 2023 season.
Chastain and the No. 1 Camaro led the way for much of Stage 1, but had to navigate difficult lapped traffic and ultimately watched the stage win slip away as Noah Gragson’s No. 42 Camaro gave him a hard time while trying to stay on the lead lap, allowing Tyler Reddick and the No. 45 Camry to take control of the race. However, Reddick’s No. 45 Camry suffered an incident on Pit Road, essentially removing him from contention for the lead.
The lead was then swapped between the No. 19 Camry of Martin Truex Jr. and the No. 11 Camry of Denny Hamlin while Chastain waited for his chance to jump. Chastain’s No. 1 NASCAR Chevy proved to be the stronger car, passing both Toyotas and holding them off at the line.
“To go up against my heroes like that, to beat [Truex] tonight, drive by him and the 11 [Hamlin], was definitely a statement,” said Chastain after the race. “It felt good. I’m proud that we were able to do that.”
Prior to his Nashville win, Chastain had only won on a superspeedway and on a road course. This victory marks his first on a traditional oval.
“It’s bigger than anything. It’s an oval, a circle track,” Chastain said. “It’s lift, slide, hit the gas and brake, turn the wheel. My boys and girls on the 1 team have not let me forget that. They have been pushing me on that. [They] take you serious when you win on an oval track.”
| Finish | Start | Car Number | Driver | Team | Laps Run | Laps Led | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Worldwide Express Chevrolet | 300 | 99 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 2 | 6 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Bass Pro Shops Toyota | 300 | 50 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 3 | 8 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | FedEx Ground Toyota | 300 | 81 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 4 | 14 | 9 | Chase Elliott | NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet | 300 | 1 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 5 | 7 | 5 | Kyle Larson | HendrickCars.com Chevrolet | 300 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 6 | 5 | 24 | William Byron | Liberty University Chevrolet | 300 | 5 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 7 | 22 | 20 | Christopher Bell | DeWalt Toyota | 300 | 3 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 8 | 23 | 43 | Erik Jones | Allegiant Chevrolet | 300 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 9 | 11 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen Chevrolet | 300 | 12 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 10 | 19 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Celsius Chevrolet | 300 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 11 | 20 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Solomon Plumbing Ford | 300 | 2 | Ford Mustang |
| 12 | 10 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Tootsies Orchid Lounge Chevrolet | 300 | 1 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 13 | 26 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Huk Performance Fishing Chevrolet | 300 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 14 | 16 | 54 | Ty Gibbs # | Interstate Batteries Toyota | 300 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 15 | 9 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | McDonald's Toyota | 300 | 0 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 16 | 25 | 41 | Ryan Preece | Morton Buildings Ford | 300 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 17 | 15 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Ally Chevrolet | 300 | 9 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 18 | 12 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Fastenal Ford | 300 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 19 | 4 | 22 | Joey Logano | Shell Pennzoil Ford | 300 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 20 | 36 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Garner Trucking Chevrolet | 300 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 21 | 31 | 21 | Harrison Burton | DEX Imaging Ford | 300 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 22 | 28 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Kroger/Ball Park Buns Chevrolet | 299 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 23 | 3 | 31 | Justin Haley | LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet | 299 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 24 | 17 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Busch Light Peach Ford | 299 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 25 | 21 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Smithfield Ford | 299 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 26 | 30 | 42 | Noah Gragson # | Black Rifle Coffee Company Chevrolet | 299 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 27 | 24 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Snap On Ford | 299 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 28 | 33 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Love's/Fleetguard Ford | 299 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 29 | 29 | 51 | JJ Yeley(i) | Patriot Mobile Ford | 298 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 30 | 2 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | The Big 615/MoneyLion Toyota | 298 | 33 | Toyota TRD Camry |
| 31 | 18 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Mahindra Tractors Ford | 298 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 32 | 34 | 77 | Ty Dillon | Raze Tea Chevrolet | 298 | 4 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 33 | 32 | 15 | Brennan Poole(i) | MACC Door Systems Ford | 297 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 34 | 35 | 78 | Josh Bilicki(i) | Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet | 297 | 0 | Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 |
| 35 | 27 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Serial 1 E-Bikes Ford | 296 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
| 36 | 13 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Menards/Pennzoil Ford | 146 | 0 | Ford Mustang |
# – Rookie
i – Points ineligible
* – Part-time driver
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