Kevin Harvick swept the opening two stages on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in another dominant performance for the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. Harvick grabbed the lead in Stage 2 on Lap 160 after a cycle of green-flag pit stops and closed out for his series-leading 18th stage victory of the season.
Pole-sitter and non-playoff driver Ryan Blaney followed Harvick to the green-white-checkered flag to finish second. Martin Truex Jr., who started at the rear of the field because of an engine change, was third. Brad Keselowski, who had to overcome a speeding penalty on pit road, was fourth, and Martinsville winner Joey Logano was fifth.
RELATED: Stage 2 results
Logano and Kurt Busch were among the cars that stayed out the longest hoping for a caution, but it never came. Busch managed to finish eighth in the stage.
The stage featured a caution on Lap 96 when Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and William Byron got into each other in Turn 3 with the No. 24 hitting the No. 48 from behind. Both cars were able to continue.
| Driver | Team | Points |
| Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | 10 |
| Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | 9 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | 8 |
| Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | 7 |
| Joey Logano | Team Penske | 6 |
| Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | 5 |
| Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | 4 |
| Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | 3 |
| Daniel Suarez | Joe Gibbs Racing | 2 |
| Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | 1 |
Stage 1 recap
Harvick used pit-stop strategy to grab the lead early and went on to win Stage 1. During the competition caution on Lap 30, Harvick took just two tires to gain track position oveer Blaney, who took four tires.
As a result, Harvick jumped to a lead that he would not relinquish as he dominated the early going by being in front for 53 of the opening 85 laps. Blaney recovered to finish fourth in the stage. Kurt Busch, in second; Erik Jones, in third; and fifth-place Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top five.
RELATED: Stage 1 results
Playoff driver Kyle Busch was hit with a speeding penalty on pit road during the competition caution and had to start from the tail of the field on the ensuing restart. However, he came on strong at the end of the stage to finish seventh.
Another playoff driver, Clint Bowyer, made contact with non-playoff driver Denny Hamlin on Lap 1, leading to an early pit stop for the No. 14. As a result, Bowyer fell two laps off the pace and was in 30th place at the stage’s conclusion.
| Driver | Team | Points |
| Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | 10 |
| Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | 9 |
| Erik Jones | Joe Gibbs Racing | 8 |
| Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | 7 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | 6 |
| Joey Logano | Team Penske | 5 |
| Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | 4 |
| Paul Menard | Wood Brothers Racing | 3 |
| Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | 2 |
| Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | 1 |