William Byron scores Hendrick Motorsports’ 300th Cup win

Here are some takeaways from a hot and chaotic day at Texas Motor Speedway.

Denny Hamlin delivered after a bizarre pit road incident

There were three cars at Texas Motor Speedway that stood out early.

Bubba Wallace started from the pole and led a race-high 111 laps. Kyle Larson led 99 laps with a car that was the fastest overall.

Denny Hamlin had one of the fastest cars during the early stages of the race but the situation changed after an incident on pit road.

Ty Gibbs hit Hamlin broadside during a pit stop in stage 1. This broke a steering arm on the No. 54 and caused significant damage to the right side of the No. 11.

This incident limited Hamlin’s ability to contend for the win. He was still able to put himself in position for a top-five finish, his third straight of the playoffs.

“Today, I thought we had a really fast FedEx Camry until we got the damage,” Hamlin said after the race. “Once we got the damage, it just wasn’t as fast as it was before.

“Still, considering how much damage it had – it was a top-three car. A bunch of carnage happened there in the end, and we avoided it, so we are in a better spot than when we entered.”

Hamlin is second in the Cup standings after the first race of the Round of 12. He is 37 points above the cutline and on the path to the next round of the playoffs.

A rough stretch for Martin Truex Jr.

The regular-season champion, Martin Truex Jr. entered the playoffs tied for the top spot in the standings. He finished 18th, 36th and 19th in the Round of 16 races.

Truex’s points helped him survive the first round of the playoffs. He then set out to snap his streak of struggles at Texas Motor Speedway. He did not achieve this goal.

Truex had speed early at Texas. The situation changed after stage 1 ended. Contact from Erik Jones sent Brad Keselowski into the rear of the No. 19. This sent Truex spinning to the bottom of the track.

The 2017 Cup champion was able to continue in the race. He just didn’t have the same speed or control during the final two stages. Truex told his team over the radio that it felt like his tires weren’t pointed in the right direction. He added that he could not turn.

Truex finished the day in 17th. This was his fourth straight playoff finish outside of the top 10. He is now 19 points above the cutline heading to Talladega, a track where he has 37 starts with nine top-10 finishes, three top fives and no wins.

Moving on to the Round of 8 is still possible for Truex. A solid day at Talladega and the Charlotte Roval should be enough to accomplish this. He just can’t afford to have more issues in the next two weeks.

The first race of the Round of 12 is complete. Texas native Chris Buescher used it to put himself in contention for the Round of 8.

Click here for the driver points | Click here for the owner points

William Byron may have won the race and locked up a spot in the Round of 8 but Buescher scored a race-high 15 stage points. He then finished 14th while continuing his career season.

Buescher entered Texas sitting 10 points above the playoff cutline. He is now 22 points to the good. He is third in the Cup standings behind only Byron and Denny Hamlin (+37). Now he heads to a superspeedway and a road course to close out the round.

Ross Chastain made similar moves during a chaotic race at Texas. He finished second after scoring three points in stage 2. He also avoided incidents while fellow playoff drivers Ryan Blaney, Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Tyler Reddick and Martin Truex Jr. dealt with issues.

Chastain went from three points below the cutline to 12 points above it. This is not a massive cushion but the next track on the schedule is Talladega where he won last season’s spring race.

The spots below the cutline underwent some significant changes. Tyler Reddick (-3) and Kyle Busch (-17) both fell below the cutline. Ryan Blaney (-11) lost five points and remained below the cutline.

Wallace entered the Round of 12 as the last driver in championship contention. He was 14 points below the cutline with no playoff points.

Wallace missed out on the win at Texas but crossed the finish line third after scoring points in the first two stages. He is now only two points out of the final transfer spot as he heads to the track where he scored his first career win.

“Struggled in traffic a little bit, but we grinded, come out with a good solid points today,” Wallace told NBC Sports. “Appreciate everybody’s support and effort, and we’ll go on to Talladega.”

The race at Texas Motor Speedway featured 11 cautions for 55 laps.

Click here to see where everyone finished at Texas.

Click here for the cumulative report.

Click here for the penalty report.

William Byron’s career season has continued with another trip to Victory Lane.

The North Carolina native took the lead late from Bubba Wallace at Texas Motor Speedway and went on to lead the final six laps. He crossed the finish line first ahead of Ross Chastain and scored his sixth win of the season.

Chastain was followed by Wallace in third, Christopher Bell in fourth, Denny Hamlin in fifth, Kevin Harvick in sixth, Brad Keselowski in seventh, Daniel Suarez in eighth, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in ninth and Chase Briscoe in 10th.

The caution has flown with 12 laps to go after a multi-car crash collected several drivers.

The incident began when Tyler Reddick and Erik Jones both hit the wall hard. Ryan Blaney ran into the rear of Jones’ No. 43 and expanded the incident.

There were several others collected, including Austin Cindric, AJ Allmendinger and Zane Smith. Martin Truex Jr. was able to avoid the incident along with Carson Hocevar.

The race at Texas Motor Speedway has significantly changed after a late caution.

Kyle Larson spun on Lap 249 while battling Bubba Wallace for the lead. He lost control and spun into the outside wall. The replay showed that there was no contact made by the two drivers.

NASCAR scored Wallace as the leader at the time of the caution. William Byron was second while Chase Briscoe was third.

While the field prepared for the restart, Larson headed down pit road so that his team could do enough work to get him back onto the track. They did not clear the DVP clock.

The caution has flown at Texas Motor Speedway with 25 laps remaining in the Round of 12 opening race.

JJ Yeley was the cause of the caution. He lost control and backed the No. 15 into the wall in Turn 2. He then slid down toward the inside wall before undoing his window net.

The caution set up an opportunity for final pit stops. Kyle Larson stayed out on the track along with Bubba Wallace, William Byron and Alex Bowman among others. Erik Jones pitted from second. He was followed by Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, Chris Buescher and several other drivers.

Jones stopped for four fresh tires while Keselowski, Buescher and Hamlin went with right-side tires only.

There are 40 laps remaining at Texas Motor Speedway. Kyle Larson continues to lead after building up an advantage of more than three seconds over Erik Jones in second.

Larson took the lead from Bubba Wallace late in stage 2. He scored the stage win and has since been in complete control of the playoff race. His car has been the fastest in clean air, to the point that no other drivers have been in position to challenge for the lead.

Jones remains in second with 40 laps remaining. He is followed by Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Bubba Wallace, William Byron, Chris Buescher, Chase Briscoe, Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott.

The eighth caution of the day has flown at Texas Motor Speedway and the timing could not be worse for Tyler Reddick.

Daniel Suarez was the cause for the caution. He spun while trying to get onto pit road and ended up in the grass. He was able to get the No. 99 fired once again but not before the yellow flew.

The reason the timing was poor for Reddick is that he was the first driver to head onto pit road. He stopped for fresh tires and fuel but fell one lap down as the other drivers continued to race.

The caution trapped Reddick a lap down. He had to take the wave around, which put him in 29th with fewer than 60 laps remaining in the race.

Ryan Blaney, another playoff driver fighting to stay above the cutline, had an issue on his trip down pit road. He was caught speeding, so he had to drop from third place to the tail end of the field.

Two stages are complete at Texas Motor Speedway. One driver has capitalized by scoring the most points among playoff contenders.

Chris Buescher finished second in stage 1 and sixth in stage 2. This equals 15 stage points.

Ryan Blaney has the second-most stage points at 11. Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Tyler Reddick and Chase Elliott all have 10 stage points. Though Larson and Reddick each have a playoff point.

Erik Jones (nine), Christopher Bell (eight), William Byron (seven) and Michael McDowell (six) were top 10 in stage points.

Bubba Wallace started the day on the pole and led a race-high 96 laps in the first two stages. He only scored three points. Pit strategy dropped him to 10th at the end of stage 1. Handling issues dropped him to ninth at the end of stage 2.

Kyle Larson has locked up 10 points and a playoff point at Texas Motor Speedway.

Larson, who won the Texas race in 2021, was seventh on the Lap 119 restart. He did not remain in this position for long.

Larson used four fresh tires to move through the field and chase down Bubba Wallace, who had built up a lead of more than two seconds over the field.

Larson used the outside line to pass Wallace on Lap 143 and then he built up a lead of more than six seconds over Erik Jones in second place.

Jones was followed by Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney Chris Buescher, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski, Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suarez.

The caution has flown on Lap 111 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Corey LaJoie was the cause for the yellow flag. He spun in Turn 2 and backed the No. 7 into the outside wall. The contact left part of a crush panel on the track and the slide flattened the right-rear tire.

The caution sent the Cup drivers down pit road for tires and fuel. Tyler Reddick, who gambled by staying out at the end of stage 1 and after the stage break, needed the most fuel.

Denny Hamlin in second needed less fuel. There were questions about potential repairs after Ty Gibbs ran into him on pit road. These repairs did not take place. Hamlin took four tires and fuel before heading back onto the track.

Bubba Wallace led the first 69 laps at Texas Motor Speedway after starting from the pole. It was his teammate that scored the stage 1 win as chaos unfolded behind him.

The caution for Kyle Busch hitting the outside wall set up a one-lap sprint to the end of the stage. Wallace led the majority of drivers down pit road for fresh tires. Tyler Reddick gambled and stayed out with Christ Buescher, William Byron, Michael McDowell, Chase Elliott, Chase Briscoe and Ryan Blaney behind him.

Once the green flag waved, Reddick jumped to the lead and led the final lap of the stage. He scored 10 points and one playoff point. Wallace finished 10th and added one point to his total.

Buescher finished second, Bell finished third, Byron finished fourth and McDowell finished fifth. Elliott, Blaney, Briscoe, Hamlin and Wallace also scored stage points.

Chaos took place at the end of the stage. Martin Truex Jr. spun after crossing the start-finish line and headed back to pit road. The replay showed that Erik Jones had hit Brad Keselowski from behind who then hit Truex and spun him.

“What the hell is going to happen to us next? I swear,” Truex said over the radio after spinning.

Kyle Busch brought out the caution in the closing laps of stage 1. This sent the majority of drivers down pit road for fresh tires so that they could complete the one-lap sprint to the stage end.

This pit cycle led to a bizarre situation featuring two members of Joe Gibbs Racing. Denny Hamlin pulled out of his pit stall and was hit broadside by Ty Gibbs.

The replay showed that Gibbs was driving down the middle of pit road instead of in the outside lane that the drivers use after they pull out of their pit stalls.

The contact damaged the right side of Hamlin’s No. 11. He said over the radio that the steering was still straight. Gibbs, however, broke the steering arm on the No. 54. He was unable to continue in the race.

Kyle Busch has brought out the fourth caution of the day at Texas Motor Speedway.

The veteran driver spun and made hard contact with the outside wall on Lap 74. He significantly damaged the left rear of the No. 8 and then he drove in reverse around the track so that he could make it back to pit road.

The incident occurred after Busch complained about a tire issue. He went high on the race track and lost several positions on Lap 60. He then said over the radio that he had a flat tire.

Busch’s crew told him that the tire was fine and that Justin Allgaier had experienced something similar during Saturday’s Xfinity Series race. Busch continued to say that the tire was chattering. He ultimately spun as the laps ticked down.

Busch made it back to his pit stall but was unable to continue in the race. He finished 34th.

The caution has flown for the third time at Texas Motor Speedway and the third time in less than 20 laps.

Todd Gilliland was the cause for the third caution. His No. 51 lost a wheel on the Lap 54 restart and spun into the inside wall.

Gilliland tried to make it back to pit road but could not get the Ford moving. He ultimately climbed from the car and ended the day 35th.

Bubba Wallace remained in the lead at the time of the caution. He held off Kyle Busch, who took the field three-wide on the restart, as well as Ross Chastain.

Austin Dillon brought out the caution on Lap 42 when the wheel and tire disconnected from his No. 3. The field took the green flag again on Lap 49, but they did not complete a lap before the caution flew once again.

Aric Almirola and Alex Bowman both spun. The replay showed that Carson Hocevar dove to the bottom of the track and took the field three-wide.

Bowman was pinched between Hocevar and Michael McDowell. He lost control, made contact with Almirola and sent them both spinning.

The incident nearly took out a playoff driver. Christopher Bell was racing in 16th after a slow pit stop. He was on the outside of Bowman and in the direct path of the No. 48. However, the car spun back to the left and avoided making contact with Bell’s No. 20.

The race at Texas has come to a halt midway through green flag pit stops.

Austin Dillon’s No. 3 was the cause for the caution. It slammed into the outside wall shortly after the 2020 Texas winner made his first pit stop of the day.

The replay showed that the lug nut, the tire and the wheel all came off of Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet before it spun into the outside wall.

Martin Truex Jr. was running behind Dillon at the time of the incident. He appeared to avoid the No. 3 as he dove to the inside.

Dillon is working with a new pit crew. Richard Childress Racing moved his normal crew to the No. 8 team ahead of the Round of 16 elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Just before the halfway point of stage 1, the Cup Series drivers began making their pit stops.

Christopher Bell was the first to make his stop. He headed down pit road from 12th but had a slow stop. There was an issue with the right-rear tire, which cost the No. 20 team several precious seconds.

Chris Buescher was the next to have an issue. He could not get going, so he also lost a considerable amount of time.

Bubba Wallace was able to make his pit stop without issues. He merged back onto the track in eighth with Ross Chastain and Kyle Busch just behind him.

With temperatures projected to hit 101 degrees on Sunday, there were concerns about the drivers keeping cool.

BJ McLeod had early issues at Texas. NBC Sports’ Kim Coon reported that the veteran driver’s cool suit had failed. He no longer had cold water flowing around his torso to keep his body temperature down.

Per NBC Sports, the temperature in Fort Worth was 100 degrees at the start of the race. The National Weather Service listed the temperature at 99 degrees.

The track temperature was 141 degrees. This was a significant change from Saturday morning’s qualifying session when the track temperature was 127 degrees.

Jelly Roll got the engines fired with a standout command and then the drivers officially started the Round of 12.

Bubba Wallace led the field to the green flag with Buescher on his right. They continued to battle on the opening lap. Wallace was able to clear for the lead on the second lap and he began taking advantage of the clean air.

Brad Keselowski remained in third. Ty Gibbs fell back to fifth after Ross Chastain passed him. The other drivers in the field began to get into single-file running order.

Wallace remained in the lead through the first five laps while putting three car lengths between himself and Buescher. The rest of the top 10 remained unchanged with the exception of Denny Hamlin, who fell to 11th as Kyle Larson passed him.

The Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway will start with Bubba Wallace on the pole. He had the fastest lap during Saturday’s qualifying session at 188.337 mph.

Wallace won the pole for the first time since Michigan last season. He finished second behind Kevin Harvick in that race. A similar outcome on Sunday will put him in a better position to contend for a spot in the Round of 8.

RFK Racing’s Chris Buescher will join Wallace on the front row for the playoff race. Brad Keselowski will line up third. Rookie Ty Gibbs will line up fourth.

Ross Chastain in fifth, Kyle Busch in seventh, Christopher Bell in ninth and Denny Hamlin in 10th are the only other playoff drivers inside of the top 10.

Kyle Larson will line up 11th. Tyler Reddick will line up 15th. Martin Truex Jr. will line up 16th. William Byron will line up 18th. Ryan Blaney in 23rd will have the worst starting position of the playoff drivers.

The heat will be a potential cause for concern during Sunday afternoon’s race. The forecast calls for 100-degree temperatures, marking the hottest race since the playoff race at Las Vegas in 2020.

There have been five races since 2006 where the temperatures topped 100 degrees. Three were at Las Vegas. The other two were at Fontana. This includes a September 2010 race when the temperature hit 110 degrees.

With the temperatures hitting triple digits, there will be concerns about the drivers and their cool shirts. Sammy Smith’s cool shirt failed during the Xfinity race on Saturday. There is a possibility that this could happen to multiple drivers on Sunday. How the different contenders deal with the temperature will be a prominent topic.

Other storylines to watch:

--Tyler Reddick is competing in the Round of 12 for the first time in his career. He locked up his spot by winning at Kansas. Now he sits eighth in the standings and three points above the playoff cutline.

Texas has been one of Reddick’s best tracks. He finished second behind Austin Dillon as a rookie in 2020. He then finished 15th in the second race at Texas that season. Reddick has finished ninth and first in past two trips to the 1.5-mile track.

Reddick’s team, which dealt with issues throughout the regular season, has been near-flawless since the playoffs began. If they can continue this consistency, Reddick will have an early opportunity to lock up a spot in the Round of 8.

--Eight of the 16 cautions during last season’s playoff race at Texas were related to tire issues. Goodyear’s director of racing Greg Stucker told media members after the race that air pressure had played a role in the issues.

“We’re gaining as much information as we can from the teams, trying to understand where they are with regard to their settings, air pressures, cambers, suspicions,” Stucker said during a media session last September. “For sure I can say without a doubt air pressure is playing into it. We know where a lot of the guys are. Some were more aggressive than others. We know that plays a part.”

Sunday’s playoff race will feature a new right-side tire after Joey Logano, Daniel Suarez and Denny Hamlin all took part in a July test session at Texas. Whether this alleviates the tire issues remains to be seen. Teams could still take a more aggressive approach with their air pressure in pursuit of speed.