DOVER, Del. - Between extreme heat and rain, Mother Nature plagued Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover Motor Speedway much as it did Saturday.
But throughout it all, Hendrick Motorsports remained at or near the front of the event.
Three of the team's drivers - Alex Bowman (third), Kyle Larson (fourth) and Chase Elliott (sixth) - scored top-six finishes after surviving a lengthy rain delay with 14 laps remaining and a pair of cautions once racing finally resumed.
Elliott's No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet was perhaps the dominant car of the day, leading a race-high 238 laps and winning stage one. He was set to cycle through to retake the lead after green-flag stops in stage three.
However, a brief shower brought out the yellow flag with a few cars yet to pit. With laps already on the tires, Elliott came in to pit during the caution period, taking on two tires and coming out third.
Slowly, Elliott, as well as Larson just behind, were chasing down the leaders when Ross Chastain slammed the wall, bringing out a yellow flag with just 17 laps to go. Shortly after, rain arrived, stalling the race with 14 circuits remaining.
However, the sun shone once again, giving NASCAR a chance to dry the track, setting up a critical decision once drivers got back to their cars - to pit, or not to pit. The top eight stayed out with Larson and Elliott resuming their pursuit from the second row.
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Less than one lap was run on the first restart attempt as Christopher Bell spun from second place. Unfortunately, William Byron, who was also a fixture near the front of the field, was collected, ultimately finishing 35th.
Then came the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish, which also ended prematurely with another caution. All the while, cars on fresh tires maneuvered their way through traffic led by Chase Briscoe, who ultimately finished second to eventual winner Denny Hamlin.
The three remaining Hendrick Motorsports cars held tough, however, bringing home important points days on the final restart with all four cars piling up stage points in both segments.
Elliott started on the pole thanks to NASCAR's metric after practice and qualifying, originally slated for Saturday, were wiped out due to rain. He briefly lost the lead on the opening lap but quickly rallied back to the point and not even a competition caution on lap 36 could thwart his momentum. The No. 9 NAPA Chevy showed the way throughout the opening stage with Elliott picking up 10 bonus points and a valuable playoff marker. Byron picked up seven points in fourth, Bowman tallied six in fifth and Larson rounded out the top 10, adding a point to his tally.
The Hendrick Motorsports contingent piled up more points in stage two. This time it was Bowman who led the group, riding one of the day's best long-run cars all the way up to second with Elliott coming home fourth, Larson fifth and Byron sixth. All told, the four teams combined to score 51 stage points.
The NASCAR Cup Series will return next weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Who won the NASCAR race today?
- Denny Hamlin, No. 11
- Chase Briscoe, No. 19
- Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Chevrolet
- Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet
- Ty Gibbs, No. 54
- Chase Elliott, No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet
- Bubba Wallace, No. 23
- Ryan Blaney, No. 12
- Chris Buescher, No. 17
- Brad Keselowski, No. 6
- Kyle Busch, No. 8
- Tyler Reddick, No. 45
- Michael McDowell, No. 71
- Joey Logano, No. 22
- Austin Dillon, No. 3
- Austin Cindric, No. 2
- Justin Haley, No. 7
- Christopher Bell, No. 20
- Ryan Preece, No. 60
- Ty Dillon, No. 10
- John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42
- Zane Smith, No. 38
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47
- Riley Herbst, No. 35
- Todd Gilliland, No. 34
- Daniel Suarez, No. 99
- Erik Jones, No. 43
- Josh Berry, No. 21
- Cole Custer, No. 41
- Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88
- William Byron, No. 24 RAPTOR Chevrolet
- Noah Gragson, No. 4
- Ross Chastain, No. 1
- JJ Yeley, No. 44
- Carson Hocevar, No. 77
- Cody Ware, No. 51
- AJ Allmendinger, No. 16