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Sonoma/Gateway winners and losers

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NASCAR America discusses the biggest takeaways from Sonoma, including Matt DiBenedetto's first top-five finish and a disappointing day for Clint Bowyer.

WINNERS

Joe Gibbs Racing — Martin Truex Jr. wins at Sonoma Raceway and Kyle Busch finishes second, giving the organization its 10th victory in 16 Cup races this season. For car owner Joe Gibbs, it capped off a weekend that included his grandson Ty winning his first ARCA race on Saturday at Gateway.

Matt DiBenedetto — Finished a career-best fourth and was his first top 10 for Leavine Family Racing. DiBenedetto celebrated by thanking those who have given him a chance to run in Cup.

Ross Chastain — A week after his win was taken away when his truck failed inspection, Chastain simply came back and won at Gateway after a call by crew chief Phil Gould to pit for fuel only late. Chastain only needs to be in the top 20 in points to be headed to the Truck playoffs and that will happen soon.

Ryan Blaney — His third-place finish tied for his best finish of the year, matching what he did at Phoenix in March.

LOSERS

Daniel Suarez — Had to start at the rear because of an engine change. He was running fourth when he made his last scheduled pit stop. However, the team was called for an uncontrolled tire. The penalty dropped Suarez to 27th with 24 laps to go. He finished 17th. The bigger issue, though, was that although he finished two spots ahead of William Byron, Suarez actually lost 16 points to Byron based on the difference in stage points. That’s important because Byron is now two points behind Suarez for 13th in the season standings.

Clint Bowyer — Was running fifth on Lap 27 when he came in to pit because of a loose wheel. He fell to 37th and went on to finish 11th, a nice recovery but losing all that track position made his day longer. What might have been had he not had that loose wheel?

Chase Elliott — Engine failure ended what looked like would be a top-five day, if not better. Instead, he finished 37th.