Pitbull race team wins, further signaling a major NASCAR shift | Through the Gears
Ross the Boss finally got his first Cup watermelon toss!
OK, there. It's out of my system. Moving on ...
It was only a matter of time, right?
Ross Chastain — he's a watermelon farmer from Florida, you know — and Tyler Reddick have been (in)arguably the two most consistent drivers so far this season, so while Chastain's win Sunday at COTA was his first in 121 Cup tries, it really shouldn't have surprised anyone.
Chastain, who led a majority of the final stage, held off — and then moved — AJ Allmendinger coming to the stripe to win in NASCAR's second trip to the 20-turn road course that gave us plenty of beatin', bangin' and bruised egos.
"It's insane," Chastain said. "To go up against some of the best with AJ (Allmendinger) — I mean, I know he is going to be upset with me, but we raced hard, both of us, and he owes me one.
"But when it comes to a Cup win, man, I can't let that go down without a fight."
Ding ding ding!
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Ross Chastain, AJ Allmendinger trade paint at COTA
All right, AJ. Before we give Ross his due, let's hear it from your viewpoint.
"At the end of the day, you have to look at yourself in the mirror," Allmendinger told Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass. "If you're OK with it, you're OK with it. Every person's different."
Would you have made that move, though?
"Doesn't matter," AJ said.
Well, um ... it kinda does ... and you kinda did!
While Chastain ultimately moved Allmendinger out of the way coming to the checkers, let's not forget what transpired just a few seconds prior. It was Allmendinger who moved Chastain to take the lead, shoving him up and off the track just a few turns before the finish.
That opened the door not only for Allmendinger, but for Alex Bowman, who would briefly take the lead before Chastain ultimately punted AJ, who took out Bowman in the process and let Chastain run away to the checkers.
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OK, Alex. Your turn!
"I've been on the other side, so I totally understand," Bowman said. "It's Ross's first win ... two corners to go, at a road course ... I would've done the same sh--."
Still, Bowman finished second to lead the Hendrick Motorsports contingent, while teammate (and points-leader!) Chase Elliott finished fourth.
And, um ... ahem. Anyone remember what I said last week in these spaces when asked what would stop Chase from winning at COTA?
The same thing that's stopped him from winning all season: his pit crew!
And anyone remember who's been saying for a few weeks now that patience has GOT to be wearing thin over at the No. 9 camp?
Well ...
"How many more times this year are we going to get (bleeped) on pit road on the last stop?" Elliott asked his team during one of the final stops of the day. Chase entered pit road fourth, came out 11th, and eventually raced his way back to ... fourth.
Something to keep an eye on ...
Justin Marks praises Chastain, Trackhouse Racing
OK, back to Ross.
Anyone know Chastain's worst finish over the past four races? Third.
Third!
The 29-year-old not only scored his first career Cup win, but also put Pitbull, Justin Marks and Trackhouse Racing in Victory Lane for the first time since they started the team last season.
With Chastain's win, there have now been six different winners this season, three first-time winners, and the last 12 points-paying races have all been won by drivers 30 or younger.
"I think a lot of it has to do with this car showcasing the talent of the people behind it," Marks said of all those numbers you just read. "I think that we were coming out of an era in the sport where you could engineer a piece of equipment that was so much — so far superior to everybody else’s — but now we do truly basically have the same stuff."
Are we seeing the next major NASCAR shift?
Which begs the question: is this Next Gen car truly a game-changer long-term, or will the "usual suspects" eventually catch up and take off?
Christopher Bell and Martin Truex Jr. both finished in the top-10 at COTA to somewhat douse the flames over at Joe Gibbs Racing, at least for another week. But Denny Hamlin struggled again — six races, zero top-10s — while Kyle Busch was basically used as a punching bag most of the day Sunday.
Over at Stewart-Haas, Kevin Harvick finished 11th — his best finish this year is sixth.
Kyle Larson has now finished 29th or worse in four of the six races this season after his 29th-place finish.
With all that going on, guys like Chastain, Tyler Reddick, Chase Briscoe (who ran well again Sunday) and Daniel Suarez are all (easily) running in the top-10 every week.
My point? It's probably too early to declare this new car a true turning point in the series, but the evidence is starting to mount.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR is experiencing a major shift six races into 2022 season
