CGR rebounds at Sonoma after Coca-Cola 600 woes
A week after Ross Chastain and Kurt Busch posted 37th and 38th-place finishes in the Coca-Cola 600, the Chip Ganassi Racing drivers each posted a Top 10 finish in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Toyota/SaveMart 350 at Sonoma (Cali.) Raceway.
Kurt Busch finished sixth and Ross Chastain finished seventh in Sunday’s race. While Chastain did not lead any laps, Busch led eight laps which was the first time in ten races that he had led a lap.
During the Coca-Cola 600, each driver encountered mechanical issues that Hendrick Motorsports claimed responsibility for.
Busch and Chastain also each earned their third Top 10 finish of the 2021 season Sunday.
Busch has not had a Top 10 finish in nearly four months, dating back to an eighth-place finish in the February 28 Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead. Busch’s other Top 10 was a fourth-place finish in the Feb. 21 O’Reilly Auto Parts 253 at the Daytona road course.
Chastain’s most recent Top 10 finish was a fourth-place finish in the May 23 EchoPark Texas Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. The fourth-place finish was Chastain’s best career finish in the NASCAR Cup Series.
There are 10 races left until the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begin. Kurt Busch is currently 19th in the regular-season points standings, 83 points behind Chris Buescher who currently holds the final playoff spot. Ross Chastain is currently 21st in points, 93 points behind Buescher.
SOURCES:
NASCAR
Racing-Reference.Info
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com