Christopher Bell passed Kyle Busch with five laps to go, then held off Daytona 500 winner William Byron to win NASCAR’s first road course race of the season Sunday at the Circuit of the Americas.
The late-race drama produced his second consecutive victory after his overtime win in Atlanta a week earlier.
Once Bell cleared Busch, the Oklahoma driver had to make a desperate bid to keep his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota in front of the hard-charging Byron in his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet and the Toyota of 2023 race winner Tyler Reddick of 23X1 Racing.
Bell raced to his 11th career victory and is a multiple-race winner for the fourth consecutive season. Busch, who led 43 of 95 laps in his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, faded to fifth as his winless streak stretched to 60 races dating to 2023.
Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott, started third and quickly dropped to the back when he spun by Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain in the first turn, but fought his way back through the field to fourth.
Connor Zilisch had a wild day in his Cup Series debut for Trackhouse. The 18-year-old started 14th and dropped back with contact in the first lap. He recovered to get back within in the top 15 by the start of the third stage.
That’s when his day ended. Zilisch couldn’t avoid a spin by teammate Daniel Suarez in lap 50, smashed into the wall, and had to scramble out of his car when it caught fire.
The Cup Series returns to ovals next Sunday at Phoenix Raceway.
