Elliott Conquers the Clash in Historic Return to Bowman Gray

Chase Elliott held off a late charge from Ryan Blaney to win the Cook Out Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium on Sunday night. In front of a packed and energetic sellout crowd, Elliott expertly navigated lapped traffic in the final laps of the 200-lap exhibition race, securing victory by 1.333 seconds over Blaney.

The win marked Elliott’s first in The Clash, which moved to Bowman Gray after a three-year run at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Driving the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Elliott embraced the NASCAR Cup Series’ return to the historic quarter-mile track after a 54-year absence.

“This environment is special,” said Elliott, who led 171 laps. “This is a place that has a deep history in NASCAR. I think they deserve this event. I hope we didn’t disappoint.”

Denny Hamlin, who finished third, briefly took the lead from Elliott on Lap 96 and led twice for 28 laps. However, Elliott reclaimed the top spot on Lap 126, and by Lap 147, Blaney had passed Hamlin, setting up a two-driver battle for the win.

Blaney’s No. 12 Team Penske Ford tightened up in the closing laps, preventing him from making a final challenge. Despite considering an aggressive move, he opted against it. “I’m not going to bulldog into him and get chased out of here with pitchforks,” Blaney said. “I just didn’t quite have enough right rear at the end to make a move.”

Joey Logano finished fourth, followed by Bubba Wallace, who advanced from 14th. Rounding out the top 10 were Ross Chastain, Austin Cindric, Tyler Reddick, Shane van Gisbergen, and Chris Buescher.

Hamlin pointed to a critical Lap 121 restart, following the seventh caution for Brad Keselowski’s spin, as a turning point. “I just didn’t do very well on that restart and kind of lost the bottom, and Chase took advantage of it,” Hamlin said. “Once you get the lead, it’s a lot easier to hang on to it.”

In the Last Chance Qualifier, Kyle Larson charged from 10th to win the 75-lap race, surviving nine cautions to secure his spot in the Clash. On Lap 72, he overtook Josh Berry, who was making his debut for Wood Brothers Racing, at a track where team patriarch Glen Wood claimed all four of his Cup Series victories.

Larson initially grabbed the lead on Lap 30, leading a race-high 36 laps, but damage from a Lap 65 restart incident with Erik Jones and Berry hindered his progress. “My car was way better than it was yesterday,” said Larson. “That was fun. I was able to get to the front without really getting into too many people.”

The NASCAR Cup Series now turns its focus to the regular-season opener, the Daytona 500, set for Sunday, Feb. 16 (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).