Pennzoil 400 highlights: Bryon sweeps all three stages, wins at LVMS
Viva Las Vegas!
The NASCAR Cup Series' March schedule kicked off Sunday with the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and we had you covered with all the action from start to finish, exclusively on FOX and the FOX Sports App.
The 267-lap race covered 400.5 miles and was made up of two 80-lap stages, followed by a third and final 107-lap stage. William Bryon swept all three stages to claim the win at LVMS in a truly dominating fashion.
Here are the top moments!
Engines fired!
Las Vegas native and two-time MLB National League MVP Bryce Harper was the grand marshal for Sunday’s race. The Philadelphia Phillies star outfielder delivered the command for drivers to start their engines for the 26th annual event.
"I’ve been a fan of NASCAR for quite some time now, so being asked to give the command, especially at my hometown track, just checks off another box on my to-do list as a fan," Harper said.
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Just like that, things were underway!
Green!
Polesitter Joey Logano got off to an early lead with Bryon and Ryan Blaney battling two-wide behind him.
Follow the leader
Byron took the lead from Logano on Lap 10, as the competition continued to heat up in the opening stage.
Making moves
Elsewhere, on Lap 17, Tyler Reddick, who didn't practice or qualify after his team discovered an engine issue Saturday morning, surged to 16th place after starting last.
Meanwhile, Byron lost his lead to Brad Keselowski after going to pit road, while Kyle Busch made contact with the wall. Byron quickly regained the lead after the first round of pit stops, with Kyle Larson and Ross Chastain trailing him.
Stage 1 in the books
Byron took Stage 1 after leading 67 of the 80-lap opening stage. It was the first stage win of the season for the 25-year-old, who was followed by Larson, Chastain, Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin to round out the stage's top five drivers.
No room for error
Byron, Larson and Hamlin were the first off pit road to get Stage 2 rolling.
Some contact from Daniel Suárez sent Chris Buescher into the wall early. Josh Berry, who was filling in for an injured Chase Elliott, hit the wall, too.
Double trouble
Byron continued his dominance as the day went on, cruising to an easy Stage 2 win with his Hendrick Motorsports teammates Larson and Alex Bowman right behind him.
Christopher Bell and Martin Truex Jr. rounded out the top five in the second stage.
Catching air
Byron, Larson and Bowman remained in the top three as the third and final stage began.
A nearby three-wide battle didn't end well for Logano, who drew the first caution of the race after bouncing off the wall and sliding through the grass. The miscue ended the day early for the No. 22 car, which immediately went to the garage.
Eyes on the prize
Hamlin led after the restart, followed by Bowman and Larson in second and third, respectively.
Down to the wire
Larson navigated through lapped traffic to regain the lead late in the race.
Meanwhile, rookie Noah Gragson picked up his third pit road speeding penalty of the day.
Not done yet!
Larson's lead continued to grow as the race winded down. With 15 laps to go, Larson was nearly 4.5 seconds ahead of the field — but things quickly took a turn.
The caution was back out after Aric Almirola got loose and slammed into the wall.
Final moments
Larson, Hamlin, Byron, Bowman and others headed to pit road before the overtime restart.
Byron, who swept the first two stages, won the race off pit road, while Truex elected not to pit.
Winner!
In the end, it was Byron who came out victorious in Las Vegas, sweeping all three stages to win Sunday's race.
PRE-RACE:
Setting the stage
Ahead of Sunday's action, FOX Sports' Bob Pockrass gave fans an inside look at what was to come in Las Vegas.
Elsewhere, FOX Sports' NASCAR crew spoke with pole winner Logano and Chastain ahead of the race.
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