Clint Bowyer, Matt Kenseth claim stage wins at Indianapolis
Staff Report
Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
STAGE 2
Matt Kenseth took advantage when the field in front of him pitted late in Stage 2 to take fresh tires and fuel, pulling away in the No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford to win Stage 2 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It's the first stage win of the year for the veteran.
Chase Elliott cruised into second place behind Kenseth, followed by Erik Jones, Joey Logano and Kurt Busch to complete the top five. Complete results for the Top 10 are listed below.
Clint Bowyer appeared set to take the Stage 2 win after winning Stage 1, but he pitted two laps before the stage ended in order to be in an optimal position for the start of the final stage.
Finish
Driver
Team
Race Points
1
Matt Kenseth
Roush Fenway Racing
10
2
Chase Elliott
Hendrick Motorsports
9
3
Erik Jones
Joe Gibbs Racing
8
4
Joey Logano
Team Penske
7
5
Kurt Busch
Stewart-Haas Racing
6
6
Daniel Suarez
Joe Gibbs Racing
5
7
Brad Keselowski
Team Penske
4
8
William Byron
Hendrick Motorsports
3
9
Ryan Newman
Richard Childress Racing
2
10
Jimmie Johnson
Hendrick Motorsports
1
STAGE 1
Pit strategy from his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing team and excellent execution on a late restart powered Clint Bowyer to a Stage 1 win in Monday's rain-delayed Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard.
Bowyer took two tires following a competition caution on Lap 30, then recovered from a bobble on a Lap 44 restart to power in front of teammate Kurt Busch into the preferred groove at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
RELATED: Stage 1 results
It was Bowyer's first stage win of 2018, and it came with the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs starting next week in Las Vegas.
Busch finished second to Bowyer, with Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson and Kyle Busch rounding out the top five. Top 10 Stage 1 results are below.
Teams had two chances to hit pit road for tires and adjustments in Stage 1. Due to persistent rainfall over the previous three days, NASCAR issued competition cautions at Lap 10 and Lap 30.