Winners, losers after Atlanta Cup race


HAMPTON, Ga. — A look at the winners and losers after a thrilling race at Atlanta.

WINNERS

Daniel Suarez — He snapped his 57-race winless drought with a dramatic three-wide finish, beating Ryan Blaney by .003 seconds and Kyle Busch by .007 seconds. It was the third-closest finish in Cup since the advent of electronic scoring in 1993. The win comes after an offseason crew chief change for the No. 99 team to help Suarez challenge for more wins after he struggled last year and missed the playoffs.

Fans — Where to begin? So much slicing and dicing in the field. Dramatic moves throughout the field. Four-wide for the lead at one point. Forty-eight lead changes. A thrilling finish. And even good weather. The fans were treated to quite a spectacle.

Chevrolet — Ford and Toyota entered the season with new bodies, but it is Chevrolet — with the same body as last year — that has opened the season by winning the first two races.

Bubba Wallace — He has finished fifth in each of the first two races of the year. He’s the only driver to score top-10 finishes at both Daytona and Atlanta this year.

LOSERS

Brad Keselowski — He’s finished 33rd in each of the first two races of the season and is 36th in points — last among drivers who have started the first two races of the year.

Joey Logano — He was penalized for a glove infraction that forced him to start at the rear (after qualifying second) and pass through the pits on the first lap. He was collected in a crash. Logano finished 28th.


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