Allmendinger Wins at the ROVAL; 4 Drivers Eliminated from Playoffs
AJ Allmendinger, renowned for his prowess on road courses, made a resounding statement at the Bank of America Roval 400 held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course this past Sunday.
Piloting the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet, Allmendinger asserted his dominance by leading twice, covering a race-high 46 laps, including the final 33. In a thrilling finish, he held off William Byron, crossing the finish line with a margin of just 0.666 seconds, clinching his first Cup race victory of the season. This triumph also marked his inaugural win at the Charlotte Road Course and the third of his career in the Cup Series, all achieved on road courses.
Despite a valiant effort, Kyle Busch secured a third-place finish at the challenging 2.32-mile, 17-turn circuit, falling just two positions short of the win required to advance to the Playoffs’ Round of 8. Joining Busch on the unfortunate list of Playoff eliminations were Ross Chastain (who finished 10th), Bubba Wallace (16th), and Brad Keselowski (18th).
Allmendinger’s pivotal moment came when Ryan Blaney made a pit stop from the lead on Lap 77, during a caution period resulting from a frontstretch chicane incident involving Denny Hamlin, Ty Dillon, and Mike Rockenfeller.
The 41-year-old racer from Los Gatos, California, weathered four more caution periods and four additional restarts to complete what he described as “the drive of my life.”
Tears of joy flowed from Allmendinger during the cool-down lap, and he remained emotional in his post-race interview, saying, “I hate crying right now, but it’s a freaking Cup race, man. You don’t know when it’s ever going to happen again… This is why you do it. This is the only reason you do it. You fight. All the blood, sweat, tears, everybody at Kaulig Racing has just been such… I’d say a down year, but up-and-down year. It’s our second year in the Cup Series.”
Byron and Ryan Blaney had already secured their places in the Round of 8 in the Playoffs with their respective victories at Texas and Talladega.
Joining them in the next playoff round, which kicks off at Las Vegas Motor Speedway next Sunday, are Tyler Reddick (who finished sixth after starting from the pole on Sunday), Denny Hamlin (37th), Christopher Bell (15th), Chris Buescher (seventh), Kyle Larson (who started from the rear in a backup car and finished 13th), and Martin Truex Jr. (20th).
Regular-season champion Truex claimed the final Round of 8 berth, securing it with a 12-point advantage over Chastain, the first driver to miss the cut.
Chase Elliott’s misfortune toward the end of Stage 2 played a pivotal role in Allmendinger’s victory. Just as Elliott, the stage leader, was about to pit to “short” the stage, a spin by BJ McLeod in Turn 4 triggered the second of seven cautions, leading NASCAR to close pit road.
Elliott was forced to return to the track and won the stage but lost critical track position after pitting during the stage break. Unfortunately, he couldn’t regain his position, ultimately finishing ninth behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman.
Ty Gibbs secured a fourth-place finish, followed by Joey Logano.
Reflecting on his exit from the Playoffs after a strong performance, Busch took a philosophical approach, acknowledging the team’s efforts, but also recognizing his responsibility for the challenging situation. “The Lenovo Camaro was pretty fast, just lacked a little bit on the long run, just didn’t quite have the feel of the tire that I was really looking for to be able to turn into the corners and to be able to drive out of the corners and keep pace with the front two there at the end,” he stated. “But overall, this ride is on me anyway…”
