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SPORTS Monday 6 august 2018

CHASE ELLIOTT Toyotas. Pole-sitter Denny the 37-car field. Menard
Continued from Page18 Hamlin finished 13th. entered the race tied for
"I was going to do a burn- The race promised to turn 16th in points with Ricky
out, but I ran out of gas. into a fuel mileage race as Stenhouse Jr., who started
Certainly glad that we were the laps wound down, and 23rd. Stenhouse finished
on the front end today." nobody has been better 16th, 12 spots ahead of
Elliott's victory came in his with the strategy than Truex Menard, and leads him by
99th Cup start and was and crew chief Cole Pearn. 10 points. The top 16 drivers
the 250th win for Hendrick All three of Truex's road make the 10-race playoffs,
Motorsports, breaking a 37- course wins were won with which start in mid-Septem-
race losing streak for one of strategy, including last year ber, and only four races re-
NASCAR's signature teams. at The Glen and this year at main in the regular season.
It also assured Elliott a spot Sonoma in California's wine COME ONE, COME ALL:
in the playoffs as he be- country. Watkins Glen International
came only the fifth driver "You feel satisfied," Elliott announced that reserved
to win a race outside of the said. "It's a huge deal. It has grandstand tickets for the
"Big 3" of Kyle Busch, Kevin not been an easy year. We race sold out for the fourth Chase Elliott (9) leads Kyle Busch (18) during a NASCAR Cup
Harvick and Truex, who were getting closer, clos- consecutive year.q series auto race, Sunday, Aug. 5, 2018, in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Associated Press
have combined to win 16 er, closer and finally got it
of 22 races. Truex ran sec- done." Elliott won the race's
ond to Elliott for most of the second stage and brought
final stage and began to the crowd to its feet with a
steadily close as both driv- pass of Busch. Elliott pulled
ers tried to save enough out to a half-second lead
gas to reach the end of the while Truex was fighting to
90-lap race. It was a two- get back to the front after
car breakaway as the rest a restart mired him in 12th.
of the field was more than Midway through the seg-
11 seconds back. ment, the Big 3 were run-
Truex closed to the back ning in the top 10, but El-
bumper of Elliott's No. 9 liott dominated and beat
Chevy as his car bobbled Busch by 1.3 seconds.
slightly out of the first turn Busch's day was ruined
on the final lap around the when Matt DiBenedetto
2.45-mile natural terrain brought out a caution just
layout. But Truex's No. 78 past the midpoint of the
Toyota skidded, Elliott re- race. The fuel probe mal-
grouped and pulled away functioned on the ensuing
and Truex sputtered home, pit stop and the crew only
out of fuel. got a few gallons into the
"I just tried all I could to No. 18 Toyota. That forced
chase him down, and I got him to pit again, dropping
there with plenty of time," him out of contention af-
Truex said. "It's just every ter dominating the open-
time I'd start putting togeth- ing segment. "Every year
er some good corners and we come here, we have
get close enough to him to a fast car and fail to ex-
even think about making ecute, whether that's just
a move, I'd get sideways called bad luck or what-
behind him. He did a good ever," Busch said. "Last year
job of putting his car exact- we had a lug nut get stuck
ly where it needed to be in the caliper, this year we
and not making a mistake." had fueling problems. It
Truex was bidding to be- never ceases to amaze
come the first Cup driver me." Other things to know
to win three straight road about the Cup race at
races since Tony Stewart Watkins Glen on Sunday:
accomplished the feat just PLAYOFF FIGHT: Paul Men-
over a decade ago (2004- ard was dealt a blow to his
05). Kyle Busch finished playoff chances before the
third, 20 seconds behind, race even started when his
followed by Daniel Suarez No. 21 Ford failed inspec-
and Erik Jones, a triumvi- tion Sunday morning and
rate of Joe Gibbs Racing he was sent to the rear of