TC Daily Pit Stop: Byron Caps Off Perfect Weekend With COTA Win; Justin Haley DQed; Kyle Busch Confronts Bell; LaJoie Okay After Medical Attention; Kobayashi Improves in Second Start
TC Daily Pit Stop: Monday, March 25, 2024
William Byron Holds Off Christopher Bell to Complete Dominant Weekend at COTA
William Byron became the first two-time race winner in the NASCAR Cup Series this season as he wrapped up a perfect weekend for the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team Sunday at Circuit of the Americas. Byron in addition to winning the race also was fastest in practice and both rounds of qualifying at the 3.410-mile road course in Austin.
Byron led a race-high 42 of 68 laps on Sunday, and he was able to hold off a hard-charging Christopher Bell by 0.692 sec. This win is the 12th for Byron in his NASCAR Cup Series career, and he has now been the first multi-time race winner in the Cup Series in each of the last three seasons.
Ty Gibbs finished third, Alex Bowman was fourth and Tyler Reddick came home in fifth.
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OFFICIAL RACE RESULTS
DRIVER STANDINGS
OWNER STANDINGS
ROOKIE STANDINGS
MANUFACTURER STANDINGS
Justin Haley, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Team, DQed for Failing to Meet Weights
Justin Haley had another solid outing in the No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang Sunday at COTA, as he ran in or around the top-10 for the majority of the event. However, in the closing laps, Haley faded to a 17th-place finish as he slowed his pace to conserve fuel.
However, Haley’s good run was wiped out following post-race inspection. According to NASCAR, Haley’s No. 51 car failed to meet the minimum weight, which was a violation of section 14.11.2 of the NASCAR Cup Series rule book. Instead of 17th, Haley would be credited with a 39th place finish at COTA, an effective 19-point penalty.
The No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet was taken back to the NASCAR R&D Center as well, where it will undergo further inspection.
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ATYL: Byron Dominates COTA Race While Bell Just Misses The Win (COTA Analysis)
Taylor Kitchen breaks down William Byron’s dominating performance at COTA as well as all of the storylines from Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix.
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Kyle Busch Confronts Christopher Bell After On-Track Run-in at COTA
Kyle Busch was looking to turn around his recent string of bad finishes (three straight finishes of 22nd-or-worse) around in a big way at COTA, and in the final Stage of the race on Lap 41, he found himself inside the top-five with a shot at a great finish. He then received a tap from Christopher Bell, which sent him spinning out.
Fortunately, Busch was able to recover to finish ninth, but it was little consolation for the driver of the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, who sought out Bell after the race to voice his displeasure about the Lap 41 move.
FOX’s race broadcast and NASCAR got footage of the confrontation, and it was quite intense.
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Corey LaJoie Okay After Medical Attention Following COTA Race
Corey LaJoie’s high hopes of a great day following a fifth-place qualifying run were hampered in a Lap 1 incident, but after salvaging a 24th-place finish, the Spire Motorsports driver suffered a scary situation on pit road after the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix.
LaJoie climbed from his car, immediately went to the ground, and stayed on the ground for a while, which prompted medical attention. LaJoie was finally able to get back to his feet and took a trip to the infield care center, where he received two bags of IV fluid, and was released.
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Kamui Kobayashi Shows Improvement in Second NASCAR Start
While Kamui Kobayashi was disappointed with a 29th-place finish following being spun in two separate incidents by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. on Lap 25, and again by Josh Berry with 16 laps remaining in the event.
“No, I have nothing to say. I mean, if they have an explanation, I think they have an explanation because I didn’t do anything wrong,” Kobayashi said in a post-race interview with Frontstretch. “He just hit me.”
But even with the disappointing ending, Kobayashi was much improved from his NASCAR Cup Series debut last season at Indianapolis. The driver of the No. 50 23XI Racing Toyota turned the 22nd-fastest best lap of the race, and he made his way inside the top-20 a couple of times in the race, getting as high as 16th with 21 laps to go.