[ad_1] The NASCAR Cup Series' June schedule continues Sunday with the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, and we've g
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The NASCAR Cup Series‘ June schedule continues Sunday with the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, and we’ve got you covered with all the action from start to finish, exclusively on FS1 and the FOX Sports app!
NASCAR’s top stars are battling it out in Madison, Illinois over 240 laps and 300 miles on the uniquely shaped speedway, which will likely pose a challenge for the new Next Gen car, as it features large degrees of banking in Turns 1 through 4.
Chase Elliott isn’t a part of Sunday’s action, as he’s currently serving a one-week suspension for intentionally wrecking Denny Hamlin at Charlotte. In his place is Corey LaJoie, who moved over from the Spire Motorsports No. 7 car.
You can find a full list of winners so far this year, as well as the season’s remaining schedule here.
Here are the top moments.
Green!
Three-time Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee gave the command for drivers to start their engines Sunday.
Just like that, things were underway at WWT Raceway!
Quick chaos
Pole-sitter Kyle Busch chose the inside line on the initial start, but it was Ryan Blaney who led the opening lap from the outside line. Meanwhile, LaJoie had a power issue right out of the gate that put him behind.
Seeing yellow
Things quickly went off track, as the first caution of the race came out on Lap 2 when Tyler Reddick spun trying to get to the inside of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in Turn 1.
Delayed
The race was red-flagged just five laps in after a lightning strike was reported within an eight-mile radius of the track.
Pop-up storms began to develop to the north of the racetrack, and drivers Carson Hocevar and Noah Gragson were seen playing football with some fans while waiting out the weather delay, which lasted over an hour and a half.
Back in action!
Drivers were finally loaded back into their cars, and the race resumed with Busch credited as the leader after six laps.
Full speed ahead
Busch switched up his strategy on the restart, choosing the outside line after taking the inside line at the initial start.
The green flag was back out at Lap 9 as Busch got clear of Blaney, who was followed closely by Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr. and a side-by-side battle between Kevin Harvick and Joey Logano for fifth.
All gas, no brakes
The battle between Logano and Harvick allowed the front four drivers to pull away from the rest of the field. Meanwhile, at the front, Busch opened up a half-second lead, while Hamlin caught Blaney for second.
Shortly after, Blaney challenged Busch for the race lead, but he wasn’t able to get it done. Busch held off Blaney and opened his lead up to 1.4 seconds with 10 laps to go in Stage 1, which he ended up winning with ease.
Rumble strips cause a stumble
Busch won the race off pit road — the narrowest pit road in NASCAR — as Michael McDowell moved up into the top 10. On the other side, Austin Cindric (speeding) and Truex (removing equipment) both drew penalties and were sent to the rear.
The green flag is back out at Lap 54, but things didn’t stay that way for long. The second caution of the day came out when McDowell got into the wall on Turn 1 after contact with Ross Chastain.
Follow the leader
The green flag returned at Lap 59, as Blaney overtook Busch for the lead for first time since the opening lap.
Elsewhere, Brad Keselowski, who made his 500th career start Sunday, was dealing with an apparent engine issue.
Big miscue
The caution flag was raised at Lap 92 after Hocevar, who had made his way up to 16th, crashed heading into Turn 1. The 20-year-old reported that his brake pedal was going soft just before crashing.
What’s more, debris from Hocevar’s car punctured the radiator on Chase Briscoe‘s car, sending him to the garage area.
Stage 2 in the books
Busch cut Blaney’s lead to just under a second with 20 laps to go in Stage 2, but Blaney was able to extended his lead back up to nearly second to secure the stage win. They were followed by Hamlin, William Byron and Daniel Suárez.
Stay tuned for updates!
PRE-RACE
Setting the stage
Ahead of the action, FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass and Jamie Little broke down what and who to watch out for Sunday.
Sunday’s field is made up of 36 drivers and includes:
Kyle Busch (pole winner)
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Martin Truex Jr.
Ryan Blaney
Denny Hamlin
Kevin Harvick
Joey Logano
Christopher Bell
Ross Chastain
Tyler Reddick
Alex Bowman
Chase Briscoe
Brad Keselowski
Corey LaJoie
Bubba Wallace
Ty Gibbs
Daniel Suárez
Chris Buescher
Aric Almirola
Ryan Preece
Austin Dillon
Austin Cindric
Erik Jones
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
A.J. Allmendinger
Justin Haley
Harrison Burton
Todd Gilliland
Noah Gragson
Carson Hocevar
Michael McDowell
Ty Dillon
Gray Gaulding
BJ McLeod
J.J. Yeley
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