Elliott wins Cup race at home track in Atlanta
Chase Elliott got by Corey LaJoie with just under two laps to go and crossed the finish line under yellow after a block sent LaJoie crashing into the wall Sunday, giving the Georgia-born driver his first victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Elliott pulled back around in front of the main grandstand, greeted by a boisterous ovation from fans who cheered loudly every time he went to the front and stretched all the way to Dawsonville, the north Georgia town that produced the winner and his father, longtime NASCAR Cup star Bill Elliott.
The wild capper to another eventful Atlanta race denied LaJoie the first victory of his career, which would've been a huge upset for the small-budget Spire Motorsports team.
Chase Elliott joined his father as the only Georgia-born drivers to win at Atlanta.
Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are the only other father-son to take the checkered flag at the historic 1.54mile track.
“To win at your home track is a really big deal for any race car driver,” Elliott said. “I've watched a lot of guys do it over the years. I felt like today was a good opportunity for us. I'm
Chase Elliott celebrates after winning NASCAR's Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
just so proud. This is obviously home for me, and home for a lot of great fans who made a lot of noise for me today.”
Ross Chastain was the runnerup, followed by Austin Cindric, Erik Jones and Ryan Blaney. LaJoie settled for the 21st spot.
Formula One
Charles Leclerc revived his Formula One title challenge by holding on to win the Austrian Grand Prix for a third victory of the season, while his Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz's hopes of a second-place finish ended when his engine blew as he was about to attack Max Verstappen's Red Bull.
Leclerc was clearly stressed in the closing laps as his throttle was not working properly, making it more difficult to control his speed into turns.
The Monaco driver held on to beat second-place Verstappen by 1.5 seconds.