LAS VEGAS — Here is a look at the winners and losers from Sunday’s Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Winners
Joey Logano — Needing Alex Bowman’s disqualification after the Charlotte Roval to remain in the playoffs, Logano earned his sixth trip to the championship race by winning Sunday at Las Vegas. Fourteen of Logano’s 35 career Cup wins (40%) have come in the playoffs. Now, he and his team have a couple of weeks to prepare for Phoenix as Logano seeks his third Cup title.
Christopher Bell — While he was disappointed in not winning, Bell finished second, scored 19 stage points and is 42 points above the cutline with two races left in the Round of 8.
William Byron — His fourth-place finish gives him four consecutive results of fourth or better. Byron is 27 points above the cutline heading to Homestead.
Trackhouse Racing — For only the third time this season, the team placed both of its cars in the top 10. Daniel Suarez finished third. Ross Chastain placed seventh.
John Hunter Nemechek — He finished ninth. It is his first top 10 in nearly four months. He had finished 25th or worse in 12 of the 14 last races before Las Vegas.
Losers
Tyler Reddick — He made what he called an aggressive move to get by Chase Elliott and that led to contact that collected them and others, including Ryan Blaney. Reddick, who did win the opening stage, finished 35th. He’s 30 points below the cutline.
Chase Elliott — He finished 33rd after the incident with Tyler Reddick. Elliott is last among the remaining playoff drivers and is 53 points below the cutline with two races left in the Round of 8.
Ryan Blaney — A punctured tire sent his car into the wall on the second lap of practice Saturday. He had to go to a backup car and started last in the race. He didn’t score points in the opening stage and he hit the wall trying to avoid Brad Keselowski’s spinning car in the incident with Tyler Reddick and Chase Elliott. Blaney finished 32nd. The reigning Cup champion is 47 points below the cutline.
