NASCAR Atlanta: Harvick eases to second Cup Series win of 2020 – NASCAR

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick eased to his second victory of the NASCAR Cup Series season at Atlanta after dominating the final stage of the race.

Harvick’s #4 Ford Mustang re-started the final segment of the 325-lap race in third position, but quickly passed Joe Gibbs Racing duo Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr to assume control of the race.

Throughout the final 114-lap stage, aside through green-flag pit-stops, Harvick comfortably held the chasing Truex and Busch at bay by around two-three seconds to ease to his 51st career Cup win, at the track where he claimed his first back in March 2001.

Truex ran strongly in the #19 JGR Toyota Camry, and claimed his first, and second stage wins of the campaign, but as he faded in his pursuit of Harvick, team-mate Busch was able to nip by in the closing stages to equal his best result of the season with second – the third time he has done that in 2020.

Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney had a sensible race in a quiet afternoon, coming home in fourth in the #12 Mustang ahead of the third JGR entry of Denny Hamlin, who did not quite have the pace to keep tabs with the team-mates around the 1.5-mile Atlanta circuit.

Kurt Busch was forced to start at the back of the field after his #1 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet Camaro failed pre-race inspection, and was forced to take a drive-through penalty early on.

The 2004 Cup champion steadily rose throughout the pack, finishing 17th and 15th in the two stages before passing Chase Elliott and Jimmie Johnson late on to record a sixth top 10 finish of the season and place as the highest Camaro finisher.

Johnson held off Hendrick Motorsports team-mate, the randomly drawn pole-sitter, Chase Elliott for seventh as team-mate’s William Byron’s race was effectively ended early on with a puncture in the opening stages.

Penske pair Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano both encountered trouble in the race, with Keselowski being slapped with a pit-road speeding penalty, whilst Logano suffered minor damage after contact with another car in the pit-road scramble.

Keselowski fought back to ninth, with 2018 champion Logano racing the #22 Mustang to 10th and came home as the last driver still on the lead lap.

Clint Bowyer was set for a strong result, following his second-place at Bristol last Sunday, but his #14 SHR machine was struggling with the right-rear tyres all race, leading to him often pitting out of sequence with the rest of the leading gaggle.

With 14 laps to go, Bowyer was forced to pit again, and fell from seventh to a lapped 20th.

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