What a few weeks it has been for NASCAR with three longshot winners taking the first couple races of the season. This week it was William Byron who started in 31st and worked his way to the front. Byron dominated stage three leading the last 58 laps with pure Hendrick Horsepower and the closest car just under 3 seconds behind. Byron on the day led 102 laps and was at the front most of the race. Tyler Reddick tried to make a late charge working his way through the top 10 but ultimately finished second. Reddick also started deep in the field at the 35th position and was one of the dark horses to win. The story of the race early on was all about the Penske cars and Chris Buescher who led a career-high 57 laps. Buescher was able to run down Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano early in both early stages. Despite the strong start, Keselowski finished 16th and Logano finished 25th. Martin Truex Jr. had a solid day as well finishing third and leading 37 laps in his Gibbs Toyota but just couldn’t hold the lead late. Truex’s teammate Denny Hamlin struggled after being slated to start on pole but after an unapproved adjustment, he was sent to start at the back. Hamlin struggled to get through the field and only ran at the front for a little bit before falling back. It was another solid race for Kevin Harvick and Michael McDowell who are the only drivers to finish the first three races in the top 10. Michael McDowell is set to show that his Daytona 500 win wasn’t just a fluke and so far he is proving everyone wrong with very solid outings. It was a quiet day as well for Chase Elliott who finished 14th and only lead 4 laps on the day. It was a surprisingly tough day for many front runners but the longshot winners have been succeeding so far. Next week NASCAR heads to Las Vegas for a duel in the desert. I will bring you the recap after and hope you enjoy the races!
-CM
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