Fort Worth, TX — RFK’s Brad Keselowski was able to smack it onto pole position during Saturday’s qualifying session. No. 22 of Joey Logano (P) managed 2nd place. Brad was able to hold the lead off the start but on lap 33, he got loose in turn one and lost the lead. He was able to avoid damage but was demoted to 3rd place. On lap 40, we would see our first caution of the race. The no. 19 of Martin Truex Jr. spun off turn 4. The no. 24 of William Byron (P) would lead the field to green on lap 45 but on lap 49, the 18 of Kyle Busch would spin off turn 4. Busch would be the 2nd caution of the race. Byron (P) would continue to lead but the 3rd caution would cone on lap 56 when the no. 47 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. would spin off the nose of the no. 42. The no. 24 would continue to lead after the green flag but would see a 4th yellow flag, this time, caused by the no. 20 getting into the wall after blowing a tire. The no. 41 of Cole Custer would also have a tire problem after the caution was called. Byron (P) would lead at the lap 84 restart but he would lose it 3 laps later after getting loose. On lap 97, the 48 of Alex Bowman (P) would spin off turn 4. Turn 4 at Texas has always been a trouble spot for drivers. The no. 5 of Kyle Larson (P) would lead the field to green on lap 103. He would hold on to win stage 2. Lap 112 restarts, and the no. 47 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. leads on the inside with the no. 34 of Michael Mcdowell on the outside but the no. 4 of Kevin Harvick gets loose in turn 4 and he will lose positions. Trouble for the no. 8 of Tyler Reddick as he pits because of a vibration. On lap 123, the no. 21 of Harrison Burton will take the lead, but the no. 20 of Christopher Bell (P) spins in turn 4 as he has a tire cut down. Everyone pits under this caution but the no. 21 of Harrison Burton will catch fire on pit road from spilled fuel but they are able to put the fire out with fire extinguishers on pit road. On lap 142, the no. 9 of Chase Elliott (P) leads on the inside, and the no. 1 of Ross Chastain (P) on the outside. On lap 168, Cody Ware has a frighting crash when coming around turn 4. He spins and comes sliding down pit road and hit the opening in the wall used to enter the garage area. He was very slow to get out of the car and needed help from the AMR safety team. All pit crew members from Alex Bowman’s team were checked and not injured. A very hard hit into the wall for Cody Ware. nos. 9, 12, 43, 3, 99, 16, 2, 8, 7, 38, 15 all pit, however, Kyle Larson (P) had to put twice to secure a wheel. The no. 9 of Chase Elliot (P) will lead on lap 178. The no. 45 of Bubba Wallace got loose from the 7th position and he will fall all the way back to 20th. 2 laps later the leader, Chase Elliot (P), hits the wall on the front stretch after a tire cutting down. Erik Jones had to pit before the pit road opened as he thought there was something wrong with the car. Another restart on lap 192 as Ryan Blaney (P) will lead on the inside with Daniel Suarez (P) on the outside as they battle but Ryan Blaney (P) will clear Suarez (P) off of turn 4 and keep the lead, but a few laps later the no. 8 of Tyler Reddick will get loose and lose 11 positions. 2 laps later, Chris Buescher will spin coming off turn 4 so the caution flag will wave. Some cars will pit with others staying out. The last restart for the stage as Ryan Blaney (P) will lead the field to the restart and will keep the lead for 9 laps and win stage 2. Nos. 34, 43, 21, 8, 4, 17, 31, 10, 16, 42, 14, and 23 will all stay out and Kyle Larson (P) will win the race off of pit road. During the Stage 2 caution, NASCAR would enter a lighting hold on lap 220. The red flag would last for 56 minutes. The no. 34 would lead the field back to green but on lap 227, the no. 8 of Tyler Reddick would take the lead. Our next caution would come on lap 242 when the no. 17 of Chris Buscher would lose a tire in turn 4. The no. 4 of Kevin Harvick would lead the field to green but would lose a tire and spin on lap 253. Martin Truex Jr. would lead the field to green but on lap 268, he too would lose a tire while leading. Earlier in the race, the no. 24 of William Byron (P) and no. 11 of Denny Hamlin (P) made contact and the no. 24 was put into the wall. Byron would use this caution to wreck the no. 11 under caution. NASCAR’s Scott Miller told Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass, “We were looking at the wreck and dispatching our equipment so we missed it. We will re-look at it and decide if penalties should be issued.” The no. 47 would lead the race to green on lap 277. However, on lap 300, the 47 would be pushed down to 3rd and he will spin. The no. 2 of Austin Cindric would spin trying to avoid him. Tyler Reddick would lead the field to green on lap 306. The no. 8 of Tyler Reddick would maintain the lead for the last few laps and win the race. This race would see the most caution at Texas Motor Speedway at 16 for 91 laps. Also, 36 lead changes are the most ever at Texas Motor Speedway. The 2005 Coca-Cola 600 had 22 cautions. The time of the race was 4 hours, 21 minutes, and 53 seconds. Below are the point standings after race one in the new round. Talladega and Charlotte ROVAL™ to follow.

Current Standings:

1. Joey Logano – 3,071

2. Ross Chastain – 3,059

3. William Byron – 3,058

4. Kyle Larson – 3,057

5. Ryan Blaney – 3,056

6. Denny Hamlin – 3,049

7. Chase Elliott – 3,045

8. Daniel Suarez – 3,045

—————-Cutoff—————

9. Chase Briscoe – 3,041

10. Austin Cindric – 3,034

11. Christopher Bell – 3,016

12. Alex Bowman – 3,015

NASCAR heads to Talladega, AL for the 2nd race in the 2nd round. NASCAR has no plans on moving the race to another day because of the potential hurricane Ian. The NWS has the temps in the 70s and a 20-40% chance of rain for the weekend. Hurricane Ian is expected to make landfall around the Tampa Bay area.