Keselowski wins at Charlotte after late restart

Brad Keselowski took advantage of a late restart and held the top spot for the final two laps in NASCAR’s version of overtime, winning the Coca-Cola 600 that began Sunday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

“I’m so happy for my team,” Keselowski said. “It’s a major. It’s the Coke 600. … We just ground this one out. All these things just came together.”

Chase Elliott was in position to win until his teammate, William Byron, spun out and created the final caution. Elliott went in for four new tires and couldn’t make up the necessary ground.

“You make decisions and live with them,” Elliott said of going for new tires.

Elliott took the lead from Keselowski with 37 laps to go in the longest race on the NASCAR circuit.

It was nearly a notable turnaround for Elliott, who Wednesday night at Darlington Raceway was contending on the final lap when he was turned into the wall by Kyle Busch in a controversial move that ended his bid to win.

The Coca-Cola 600 had 11 different leaders, with Elliott becoming the last of those. Keselowski won this event for the first time.

Jimmie Johnson was the runner-up, followed by Elliott, Ryan Blaney, Busch, Kevin Harvick and defending champion Martin Truex Jr.

NASCAR had the spotlight to itself on a day that traditionally features a full slate of auto racing. But Formula One’s Monaco Grand Prix was canceled and IndyCar’s Indianapolis 500 was moved to August amid concerns and restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.

Joey Logano, who turned 30 on Sunday, won the third stage. He dropped to eighth after the restart, then dipped to the 20th spot when a penalty for speeding on pit road was assessed.

Alex Bowman captured the first two stages. He finished 20th.

Like both races in Darlington, S.C., over the past week, there were no spectators in the stands. However, there were onlookers from condominiums connected to the speedway for Sunday’s event.

During the opening laps, Denny Hamlin’s car lost its ballast. The winner of Wednesday night’s rain-shortened race in Darlington, he quickly fell multiple laps back and was out of contention about a half-hour into the race.

There was a 68-minute rain delay just 50 laps in, with Kurt Busch leading. The race ended shortly after midnight.

Clint Bowyer was out because of a wreck, failing to reach the 100-lap mark. Bubba Wallace exited shortly after.

Kurt Busch began on the pole after qualifying in the afternoon. It was his 28th pole on the circuit, but first at this track.

This was the third Cup series race in an eight-day period. There’s another race Wednesday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway, part of NASCAR’s rapid return to action at the top level.

–Field Level Media