EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix NASCAR Cup Series race at the Circuits of The Americas in Austin, Texas on March 27, 2022. (Photo: Ralph Arvesen)
Ross Chastain had the car to beat all day at the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, but in the closing corners, the Watermelon Man had to beat and bang his way past a bevy of hard-charging contenders to earn the first career NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) victory for himself and his Trackhouse Racing team.
In his sixth season in NASCAR’s top series, the Alva, Fla.-native led 31 of 69 laps around the famed 3.41-mile, 20-turn Circuit of The Americas (COTA), but the final corners presented perhaps the greatest challenge. Chastain, road course ace A.J. Allmendinger and Alex Bowman all traded paint and positions in the closing lap of overtime. After running off course and falling to third, Chastain drove to the bumper of Allmendinger, sending him into Bowman. With the checkered flag in sight, Chastain emerged victorious, celebrating in victory lane by smashing a celebratory watermelon as has become his winning tradition.
“It’s never tasted sweeter,” Chastain said. “I don’t know how we got back by. I was so worried about A.J. on the second to last restart that I let Tyler (Reddick) drive right by both of us. “We raced hard. I know (Allmendinger) is going to be mad at me, but when it comes to a win, I wasn’t going to leave anything out there.”When the dust settled, Hendrick Motorsports’ Bowman finished second, Christopher Bell was third, followed by Chase Elliott and Tyler Reddick. After the incident in the closing corners, Allmendinger fell to 33rd. Trackhouse Racing owner Justin Marks said the victory is not only a credit to Chastain, but to every employee and person who is part of the team.
“This was an ambitious thing to sort of dream up,” said Marks. “I asked a lot of people who had a lot of experience in this sport to trust me and to believe in Trackhouse. Every single one of those people owns a piece of this victory. “Just to have an opportunity to be on this stage, to be at this stage in this sport, I feel really, really lucky.”Sunday’s win was the latest in a string of strong finishes for Chastain and the No. 1 team who rattled off two runner-up finishes and a third-place run in the three weeks prior. (Source: NASCAR Wire Service)
| Pos | # | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Time | Gap | Interval | Laps Led | |
| 1 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:20'57.006 | 31 | |||
| 2 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:20'58.337 | 1.331 | 1.331 | ||
| 3 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Toyota | 69 | 3:20'58.877 | 1.871 | 0.54 | ||
| 4 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:20'59.667 | 2.661 | 0.79 | ||
| 5 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'00.040 | 3.034 | 0.373 | 2 | |
| 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Ford | 69 | 3:21'00.464 | 3.458 | 0.424 | 1 | |
| 7 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Toyota | 69 | 3:21'00.880 | 3.874 | 0.416 | ||
| 8 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Ford | 69 | 3:21'01.003 | 3.997 | 0.123 | 11 | |
| 9 | 43 | Erik Jones | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'01.809 | 4.803 | 0.806 | ||
| 10 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'02.176 | 5.17 | 0.367 | ||
| 11 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Ford | 69 | 3:21'02.382 | 5.376 | 0.206 | ||
| 12 | 24 | William Byron | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'02.705 | 5.699 | 0.323 | ||
| 13 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Ford | 69 | 3:21'03.378 | 6.372 | 0.673 | ||
| 14 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Ford | 69 | 3:21'04.169 | 7.163 | 0.791 | ||
| 15 | 31 | Justin Haley | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'04.961 | 7.955 | 0.792 | ||
| 16 | 38 | Todd Gilliland | Ford | 69 | 3:21'05.157 | 8.151 | 0.196 | ||
| 17 | 21 | Harrison Burton | Ford | 69 | 3:21'05.567 | 8.561 | 0.41 | ||
| 18 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Toyota | 69 | 3:21'06.276 | 9.27 | 0.709 | 3 | |
| 19 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Ford | 69 | 3:21'06.534 | 9.528 | 0.258 | ||
| 20 | 42 | Ty Dillon | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'07.564 | 10.558 | 1.03 | ||
| 21 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Ford | 69 | 3:21'07.566 | 10.56 | 0.002 | ||
| 22 | 77 | Josh Bilicki | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'08.056 | 11.05 | 0.49 | ||
| 23 | 41 | Cole Custer | Ford | 69 | 3:21'08.253 | 11.247 | 0.197 | ||
| 24 | 99 | Daniel Suarez | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'08.494 | 11.488 | 0.241 | 15 | |
| 25 | 50 | Kaz Grala | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'08.993 | 11.987 | 0.499 | ||
| 26 | 66 | Boris Said | Ford | 69 | 3:21'12.804 | 15.798 | 3.811 | ||
| 27 | 51 | Cody Ware | Ford | 69 | 3:21'16.641 | 19.635 | 3.837 | ||
| 28 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Toyota | 69 | 3:21'25.221 | 28.215 | 8.58 | ||
| 29 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Chevrolet | 69 | 3:21'39.690 | 42.684 | 14.469 | ||
| 30 | 14 | Chase Briscoe | Ford | 69 | 3:22'46.479 | 1'49.473 | 1'06.789 | 2 | |
| 31 | 22 | Joey Logano | Ford | 69 | 3:22'51.742 | 1'54.736 | 5.263 | 2 | |
| 32 | 45 | Kurt Busch | Toyota | 69 | 3:23'25.217 | 2'28.211 | 33.475 | ||
| 33 | 16 | A.J. Allmendinger | Chevrolet | 68 | 3:18'40.810 | 1 Lap | 1 Lap | 2 | |
| 34 | 27 | Loris Hezemans | Ford | 62 | 2:56'17.368 | 7 Laps | 6 Laps | ||
| 35 | 15 | Joey Hand | Ford | 60 | 2:53'40.502 | 9 Laps | 2 Laps | ||
| 36 | 7 | Corey Lajoie | Chevrolet | 57 | 2:40'43.746 | 12 Laps | 3 Laps | ||
| 37 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Chevrolet | 52 | 2:24'30.837 | 17 Laps | 5 Laps | ||
| 38 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | Toyota | 44 | 2:08'33.994 | 25 Laps | 8 Laps | ||
| 39 | 78 | Andy Lally | Ford | 19 | 50'00.674 | 50 Laps | 25 Laps |
NASCAR
NASCAR is the largest racing organization in the United States and is most famous for the Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Camping World Truck Series. Each year NASCAR sanctions over 1,500 races at over 100 tracks in 48 US states as well as in Canada, Mexico, and Europe.
Looking to the future, NASCAR is developing the Next Gen car, expected to hit the track in 2021. The new car is going to feature a redesigned body and under-the-hood enhancements to make NASCAR stock cars even more like the cars in showrooms across America.
Circuit of The Americas
Circuit of The Americas is the premier destination for world-class motorsports and entertainment in the United States. Set on 1,500 acres in the rolling hills just outside downtown Austin, Circuit of The Americas has hosted the biggest names in racing, action sports and music since 2012. At its heart is a 3.41-mile racetrack that was designed to challenge the world's most exacting competitors while providing a thrilling spectacle for audiences.
The 20-turn, counterclockwise circuit takes advantage of the naturally undulating landscape, including an intimidating 133-foot hill at Turn 1 that must be seen in person to be believed. It is home to Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, NASCAR EchoPark Texas Grand Prix, and MotoGP Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas, and has played host to ESPN's X Games, the FIA World Endurance Championship, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Pirelli World Challenge and more.
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Photos by Ralph Arvesen
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