Let’s run down the winners and losers from Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway…
WINNERS
Tyler Reddick — Since the announcement that Reddick will be leaving Richard Childress Racing to drive for 23XI Racing in 2024, he has been under continuing scrutiny. Would Reddick coast the rest of this year and into next? Would his team give up on him? Those questions were answered with authority Sunday as Reddick rode a fast car to a win at the Brickyard.
Rookies — Sunday was a big day for three series rookies. Harrison Burton (third) and Todd Gilliland (fourth) scored their best finishes of the year. Burton’s previous best was a 10th at Atlanta, and Gilliland’s best was a 15th at Darlington. Austin Cindric came home second, his best run since winning the Daytona 500 in February.
Chris Buescher — There’s a fire in your race car and you finish 10th? Yes, in Buescher’s case. A fire in the interior of Buescher’s Ford was extinguished on pit road. Part of the interior of the car was cleaned during a pit stop, and Buescher stayed in the race, motoring through the field to finish in the top 10.
LOSERS
Ross Chastain — Chastain suddenly appeared at the front of the field in the closing laps Sunday, but it was mostly a mirage. On the final restart, Chastain skipped past Turn 1 and instead drove onto the access lane beyond the turn, re-emerging on the race track to challenge Tyler Reddick for the lead. NASCAR declared that move a no-no and dropped Chastain to 27th in the finish order.
Kevin Harvick — Harvick’s winless streak reached 65 Sunday as he finished 33rd after a late-race accident.
Kyle Larson — Sunday was a day to forget for Larson. He spun out early in the race, struggled to catch the leaders and finally crashed out in a scary incident. His brakes apparently failed as he rolled into Turn 1, and he slammed into the side of Ty Dillon‘s car. Larson’s Chevrolet was lifted off the ground by the impact. Neither driver was injured.
