What drivers said at Atlanta during crash-filled Cup race
Josh Berry — 30th: 'I have no idea really what happened. It looked like they were just pushing each other hard for 8th, 10th, 12th like that and got squirrely. It's just disappointing getting taken out and having that happen with this many laps left. It's tough, but (Team Penske) had the four fastest cars yesterday. We were doing our best to fend off all the battles and work with each other at the beginning. Everyone on our 21 team and everybody at Team Penske have a lot to be proud of for how yesterday and the start of the race went. Unfortunately, we just got swept up in somebody else's mess.'
Chase Briscoe — 34th: 'We were about ready to go. I guess NASCAR came over there and saw our chassis was bent or broke, so they're like, 'Yeah, you guys can't go back out.' So kind of wasted 30 minutes working on it. Just unfortunate. The No. 19 Toyota missed the balance at the beginning and put us behind, and obviously, that big wreck, there was just nowhere to go. Looking forward to two road courses coming up and hopefully a JGR or Toyota car can win. Just an unfortunate day for us.'
Joey Logano — 35th: 'I was in the middle of it, so I haven't seen a replay yet to know what happened. Cars are sideways, and you get in the brakes, and everyone is just running into each other. Just a speedway wreck, especially with everyone so tight on the restart. Wrong place at the wrong time. We tried to win the stage and unfortunately didn't' get that done, and then you have to pay the piper and go to the back. It's unfortunate that it happens. The Penske cars were so strong, so fast. It's part of the game sometimes. Sometimes you're the ball, sometimes you're the bat. Today we're the ball.'
Austin Cindric — 37th: 'A lot of cars wrecking in the middle of the straightaway, which here you kind of more expect it in the middle of the corners, but maybe just a push gone wrong. It's hard to say. I had a small chance to get through a gap there, but obviously it didn't work out. It's a shame. Obviously, we had a super fast Ford Mustang. We wanted to keep the thing out front. I was looking forward to it because we got back in traffic with staying out to win the stage, but I was looking forward to see what our car was gonna do in dirty air and see what final adjustments we needed to make and have that opportunity to learn there. It's just a shame and a shame for everybody at Team Penske bringing such fast cars and all of them wreck out.' I'm a big believer in the law of averages and we've reset after Talladega and here we are.'
Corey LaJoie —- 38th: 'Saw a little smoke and then it was my hood on my windshield, unfortunately. We were getting it going, and I felt like the car was good right until the point of impact, unfortunately. Man, we had run so good here in the past, and I thought our car was really, too. Track position is so important. Who knows how the night could have gone. That's the risk you take just jamming it in there and being aggressive on restarts. I really appreciate Rick and everybody on that 01 team. I don't know when I'll be doing it again, hopefully in a couple of weeks. This is still the best seat in the house. The TV stuff was good, but driving these things at 200 mph is pretty badass. I don't know why we see guys pushing like dummies early down the backstretch. I don't know what we're doing. We just started the stage. I don't know why we're pushing like we're damn bumper cars at Frankie's Fun Park, but that's not to be surprised. I think there are a lot of guys who don't make wise decisions driving these things on speedways. Unfortunately, we were right smack in the middle of it.'
Ryan Blaney — 40th: 'I couldn't see much. As soon as they started spinning and coming down, I tried to get to the apron and finally got there and got blocked. Story of our year: Getting caught up in other people's garbage. As soon as I feel like we get it going pretty good and find some momentum, we never really seem to have things going our way. Tried to flip the stage and was right in the middle of it. Stinks and that's the way it goes sometimes. We'll be back and go at it in Chicago next week. I definitely thought we could improve (the car) in dirty air, but I was excited to work through it during the night and never got the chance.'
WILL BE UPDATED POSTRACE
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
'Massive Wreck' In NASCAR Atlanta Race Results In Major Damage To Multiple Cars
'Massive Wreck' In NASCAR Atlanta Race Results In Major Damage To Multiple Cars originally appeared on The Spun. NASCAR is in Atlanta today for the Quaker State 400 as part of the NASCAR In-Season Challenge. Unfortunately, one of the tournament's biggest proponents just saw his car get wrecked as part of the action. Advertisement On Lap 57, Christopher Bell's No. 20 car got turned and subsequently smashed as several drivers rammed into his car. One of the other car casualties of the wreck was Ryan Blaney's No. 12 car, which also sustained "major damage" after the dust settled. Bell and Blaney got sent to the garage while Kyle Larson, Bubba Wallace, AJ Allmendinger, Austin Dillon and a few others lost a lot of ground. "A problem for Christopher Bell turned into a big problem for others. Ryan Blaney's bid to win, and advance in the In-Season Tournament is done thanks to this incident, which ended Stage 1 of the Quaker State 400," motorsports writer Toby Christie remarked on X. NASCAR fans are already annoyed that their brackets in the In-Season Challenge have already been destroyed by the eliminations from the race: Advertisement "Did a 5 race NASCAR bracket pool starting with tonight's race in Atlanta. Walk into the house and see a 30 car wreck. So the equivalent of if 50 planes carrying NCAAB teams crashed. NASCAR gambling is brutal," one user lamented with a laughing emoji. "#NASCAR I'm so glad that I didn't get caught up in the hoopla of making a bracket, it probably would have been busted by now," wrote another. "There goes my fantasy team AND my bracket. I coulda been a millionaire!" a third wrote. "I saw my entire final four in the bracket challenge right in the middle of the pileup lol." Advertisement "#NASCAR can just call the insurance company for the bracket payout and tell them they get to keep the money. The house always wins." HAMPTON, GEORGIA - FEBRUARY 22: Christopher Bell, driver of the #20 DEWALT Toyota, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway on February 22, 2025 in Hampton, Georgia. (Photo by)The irony is that Bell was one of the most fervent supporters of the In-Season Challenge. 'I mean, I think it's going to be a great addition to the sport,' Bell said in May of last year. 'And it's certainly going to open up the strategy a lot, because it really creates a head-to-head racing scenario where if the yellow flag comes out, you might just do the opposite of the guy that you're racing — regardless of what that does to your finishing position. So I think it's going to be awesome for the sport, and it's going to be really fun to pay attention and see how it influences the race.' Advertisement Time will tell if the tournament is great for the sport. Though for right now, it sure wasn't great for Bell. Related: NASCAR Insider Blasts 'Dumb' Idea For In-Season Tournament 'Massive Wreck' In NASCAR Atlanta Race Results In Major Damage To Multiple Cars first appeared on The Spun on Jun 29, 2025 This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jun 29, 2025, where it first appeared.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Elliott is in position to contend for 2nd NASCAR title following 'surreal' last-lap win in Atlanta
HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Chase Elliott couldn't have picked a better setting for a drought-breaking win. Fans roared in approval after Elliott, the home-state favorite, passed Brad Keselowski on the final lap to end a 44-race drought by winning the NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta on Saturday night. Elliott's 20th career victory pushed him to second place in the Cup Series points race, putting him in prime position to return to the top of the NASCAR world after winning his first championship in 2020. Elliott earned a spot in the NASCAR playoffs with his first victory since April 2024 at Texas. He said he'll always remember the win as a career highlight, in part because of the ovation from fans who chanted 'Chase! Chase! Chase!' Elliott, a Dawsonville, Georgia, native, climbed into the stands at EchoPark Speedway, formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway, to celebrate with the fans. 'It was, truthfully, a pretty surreal moment,' Elliott said. 'Something I'll remember for the rest of my life. ... Saturday night under the lights, been a while since we won, just getting ourselves a win and advancing up on the playoff thing." It was his first Atlanta win since 2022. Elliott has 594 points, 37 behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who has 631. A third Hendrick Motorsports driver, Kyle Larson, is third. Another Hendrick driver, Alex Bowman, played a key role in Elliott's comeback win. Bowman, who finished third, gave Elliott a push and then helped block Keselowski on the final lap. 'I'm happy for the 9 team,' Bowman said. 'It's a big win for him in his hometown. ... I'm glad to have a Hendrick car in victory lane. I wish it was us.' Elliott said he'll try to repay the favor by helping Bowman join the other three Hendrick drivers in the playoffs. 'I recognize that he gave me a great shove," Elliott said. "I recognize that he took his run on Brad, too, to try to get himself to second, which ultimately helped me as well. 'Yeah, those are all things that I remember.' Elliott advanced to the second round of NASCAR's new In-Season Challenge, a five-race, bracket-style tournament. With the field cut from 32 to 16 drivers, Elliott will be paired against John Hunter Nemechek when the Cup Series moves to the Chicago Street Race next Sunday. A $1 million prize awaits the winner, and Elliott's odds improved after Atlanta wrecks knocked out the top two seeds, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe. Elliott wouldn't be the first family member to win a $1 million bonus. In 1985 his father, Bill Elliott, became the first winner of the Winston Million as a reward for claiming wins in three of the circuit's top four races at the time. The bonus earned the elder Elliott the nickname 'Million Dollar Bill.' Now the younger Elliott is a strong contender to become first in line for another $1 million prize. 'It'd be a really cool thing to win for sure and hope it works out that way," Chase Elliott said. Elliott's victory drought came after he needed surgery to repair a broken tibia in his left leg suffered in a snowboarding accident and missed six races in 2023. He said the support of longtime crew chief Alan Gustafson was 'in large part' responsible for helping him retain his confidence and reclaim his winning form. Gustafson said the win was more important for the 2025 playoff race than for ending the victory drought. 'The points were getting tight for the playoffs, for sure,' Gustafson said. 'I think that's probably the biggest thing. I think all the cars contending to win, I don't think any of them had won. I think that's probably the biggest thing we needed was that cushion.' Saturday night's win was Elliott's third consecutive top-five finish. 'When you're fortunate enough to climb the mountain and be able to stand at the top of the mountain with someone, that's an incredible achievement, right?' Elliott said. 'That's something that (Gustafson) and I will always cherish and remember that we did that together. 'For me it's really, really important to climb that mountain with the same people that we did the first time and know that we never quit on each other. That's just a really important piece of the puzzle for me.' ___
Fox Sports
an hour ago
- Fox Sports
Elliott is in position to contend for 2nd NASCAR title following 'surreal' last-lap win in Atlanta
Associated Press HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) — Chase Elliott couldn't have picked a better setting for a drought-breaking win. Fans roared in approval after Elliott, the home-state favorite, passed Brad Keselowski on the final lap to end a 44-race drought by winning the NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta on Saturday night. Elliott's 20th career victory pushed him to second place in the Cup Series points race, putting him in prime position to return to the top of the NASCAR world after winning his first championship in 2020. Elliott earned a spot in the NASCAR playoffs with his first victory since April 2024 at Texas. He said he'll always remember the win as a career highlight, in part because of the ovation from fans who chanted 'Chase! Chase! Chase!' Elliott, a Dawsonville, Georgia, native, climbed into the stands at EchoPark Speedway, formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway, to celebrate with the fans. 'It was, truthfully, a pretty surreal moment,' Elliott said. 'Something I'll remember for the rest of my life. ... Saturday night under the lights, been a while since we won, just getting ourselves a win and advancing up on the playoff thing." It was his first Atlanta win since 2022. Elliott has 594 points, 37 behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, who has 631. A third Hendrick Motorsports driver, Kyle Larson, is third. Another Hendrick driver, Alex Bowman, played a key role in Elliott's comeback win. Bowman, who finished third, gave Elliott a push and then helped block Keselowski on the final lap. 'I'm happy for the 9 team,' Bowman said. 'It's a big win for him in his hometown. ... I'm glad to have a Hendrick car in victory lane. I wish it was us.' Elliott said he'll try to repay the favor by helping Bowman join the other three Hendrick drivers in the playoffs. 'I recognize that he gave me a great shove," Elliott said. "I recognize that he took his run on Brad, too, to try to get himself to second, which ultimately helped me as well. 'Yeah, those are all things that I remember.' Elliott advanced to the second round of NASCAR's new In-Season Challenge, a five-race, bracket-style tournament. With the field cut from 32 to 16 drivers, Elliott will be paired against John Hunter Nemechek when the Cup Series moves to the Chicago Street Race next Sunday. A $1 million prize awaits the winner, and Elliott's odds improved after Atlanta wrecks knocked out the top two seeds, Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe. Elliott wouldn't be the first family member to win a $1 million bonus. In 1985 his father, Bill Elliott, became the first winner of the Winston Million as a reward for claiming wins in three of the circuit's top four races at the time. The bonus earned the elder Elliott the nickname 'Million Dollar Bill.' Now the younger Elliott is a strong contender to become first in line for another $1 million prize. 'It'd be a really cool thing to win for sure and hope it works out that way," Chase Elliott said. Elliott's victory drought came after he needed surgery to repair a broken tibia in his left leg suffered in a snowboarding accident and missed six races in 2023. He said the support of longtime crew chief Alan Gustafson was 'in large part' responsible for helping him retain his confidence and reclaim his winning form. Gustafson said the win was more important for the 2025 playoff race than for ending the victory drought. 'The points were getting tight for the playoffs, for sure,' Gustafson said. 'I think that's probably the biggest thing. I think all the cars contending to win, I don't think any of them had won. I think that's probably the biggest thing we needed was that cushion.' Saturday night's win was Elliott's third consecutive top-five finish. 'When you're fortunate enough to climb the mountain and be able to stand at the top of the mountain with someone, that's an incredible achievement, right?' Elliott said. 'That's something that (Gustafson) and I will always cherish and remember that we did that together. 'For me it's really, really important to climb that mountain with the same people that we did the first time and know that we never quit on each other. That's just a really important piece of the puzzle for me.' ___ AP auto racing: recommended
