NASCAR
Alex Bowman Steals Las Vegas Victory in Overtime Thriller
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – For the fifth time in the last year, Alex Bowman plays upset, lucking into another win. The Ally 48 team tamed Las Vegas in an Overtime stunner, holding off Kyle Larson. After two terrible races to start 2022, Bowman is now locked into the Playoffs with the clutch victory.
Bowman’s day started off on the right track, as he took the Stage 1 win. The 48 inherited the lead late after passing teammate William Byron. Bowman would not back up this performance in Stage 2 though; he was not in the top 10. Stage 2 was largely dominated and won by Ross Chastain.
Final Caution Sets Up Mad Overtime Dash
The final cycle of green flag pit stops would be interrupted by a caution, when Denny Hamlin broke a transaxle. The timing of this yellow put Kyle Busch ahead of Chastain’s 1 car. Once racing resumed, Martin Truex Jr. quickly passed the 1, and began to track down Busch. A classic Joe Gibbs Racing teammate battle was shaping up, as the 18 held off the 19 lap after lap.
However, the players up front would drastically change with the final caution. With just three laps to go, Erik Jones slammed the outside wall, also forcing Bubba Wallace hard into the inside tires. This crash would send the race into overtime, and bring all of the leaders down pit road again.
That was REALLY close.
Two days end for drivers with only a couple of laps left at @LVMotorSpeedway. pic.twitter.com/ufQ77rAAz1
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) March 7, 2022
While Busch and Truex were the first cars on four new tires, they were leapfrogged by a Hendrick Motorsports trio. Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, and William Byron all took two tires, and would restart up front. On the last restart, Bowman was able to stay alongside Larson’s 5, taking the win off the final corner. Bowman is now locked into his fifth Cup Series Playoffs with the Las Vegas win.
“I just can’t thank Ally and Chevrolet, everybody from Hendrick Motorsports enough,” Bowman said. “This thing was so fast all day. Never had the track position we needed to show it. Man, what a call by Greg Ives (crew chief) and the guys to take two (tires) there. Obviously it paid off. Racing Kyle (Larson) is always fun. Got to race him for a couple wins. We’ve always raced each other super clean and super respectfully. Just can’t say enough about these guys. It’s been a pretty awful start to the year, so to come out here and get a win on a last restart deal is pretty special.”
Alex Bowman’s luck certainly took center stage in overtime at Las Vegas, as the 48 wins big. Bowman now has seven career Cup Series victories, with five of them coming in the last calendar year. Five wins in the past year is second only to teammate Kyle Larson.
Behind Bowman and Larson, the top 10 were Ross Chastain, Kyle Busch, William Byron, Aric Almirola, Tyler Reddick, Martin Truex Jr., Chase Elliott, and Christopher Bell.
Three races into 2022, there have been three different winners. The last two weeks have gone to a driver from Hendrick. Can that streak extend to four weeks?
The Cup Series will be back in action next Sunday from Phoenix Raceway. Can Phoenix provide a fourth-straight different winner? The Ruoff Mortgage 500k will go green at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Hendrick Motorsports via Twitter
