>>Truex Opens NASCAR Playoffs With Win

 

Martin Truex Jr. backed up his regular-season dominance with a victory Sunday in NASCAR's playoff opener at Chicagoland Speedway.

 

Truex again proved he'll be the driver to beat over the final nine races as he chases his first Cup championship. Truex raced to his fifth victory of the season and earned an automatic berth in the second round of the playoffs, earning even more points in his bid to compete for the title in the finale at Homestead.

 

Truex had a nearly 7-second lead over Chase Elliott in the final laps and won at Chicagoland for the second straight season.

 

Elliott was second, followed by Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson.

 

Truex's No. 78 Toyota needed four tries through pre-race inspection before the car was cleared. By the end, there was no doubt the path to the NASCAR championship goes through Truex.

 

>>Allgaier Wins XFinity Series Race Saturday

 

Justin Allgaier pulled away off the final restart and won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race Saturday at Chicagoland Speedway.

 

Allgaier, from nearby Riverton, won for the second time this season in NASCAR's second-tier series. JR Motorsports had a banner day with Allgaier's win and the official coronation of Elliott Sadler's regular-season championship.

 

Xfinity opens its postseason next week at Kentucky Speedway.

 

Sadler and Allgaier were locked into the playoff field. Jeremy Clements, Cole Custer, Matt Tifft, William Byron, Ryan Reed, Brennan Poole, Daniel Hemric, Michael Annett, Blake Koch and Brendan Gaughan are the rest of the playoff drivers.

 

Cup regular Kyle Larson was second at Chicagoland.

 

Byron, who will replace Kasey Kahne in the No. 5 car next year at Hendrick Motorsports, enters the postseason as the points leader.