DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The second Duel that ran caution free with Chase Elliott holding off Carson Hocevar by 0.065 seconds to win his third 150-mile qualifying race and earn the fourth starting position for the Daytona 500.
In the second Duel, Elliott led twice for nine laps and became the third Hendrick Motorsports driver to win three or more Duels. NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon leads the organization with five.
“A great way to get the blood pumping for sure on a Thursday night,” said Elliott, who is seeking his first win in the Great American Race. “There was a lot going on those last handful (of laps). Really, ever since we came off of pit road after the cycle, we were getting after it. It was a lot of fun.
“Had some great support there. Carson did a great job helping me control those lanes, helping get Team Chevy for victory lane tonight. Certainly, owe him an appreciation for just kind of sticking with it, also pushing me well. It’s real easy to get people out of control. Appreciate that.”
Reigning Cup Series champion Kyle Larson ran third, followed by former DAYTONA 500 winner Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell. Josh Berry, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Todd Gilliland, Ty Gibbs and Denny Hamlin claimed positions six through 10, respectively.
Chase Briscoe, who locked into the second starting position during Wednesday night’s time trials, led a race-high 38 laps but fell victim to a lengthy green-flag pit stop on Lap 45, lost the draft and finished 20th.
Anthony Alfredo had a relatively stress-free run to claim the Daytona 500 spot available to Open cars in the second Duel, or so he thought. Though Alfredo finished 18th, 23 seconds ahead of B.J. McLeod — the next-best Open driver — his finish was disallowed after post-race inspection, and McLeod will compete in the Great American Race on Sunday.
According to NASCAR Cup Series director Brad Moran, a transmission cooling hose on Alfredo’s No. 62 Chevrolet was not fastened properly, and another hose was disconnected, affecting both cooling and airflow.
The finish:
1. (4) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 60.
2. (14) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 60.
3. (3) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 60.
4. (10) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 60.
5. (6) Christopher Bell, Toyota, 60.
6. (13) Josh Berry, Ford, 60.
7. (19) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Chevrolet, 60.
8. (16) Todd Gilliland, Ford, 60.
9. (5) Ty Gibbs, Toyota, 60.
10. (2) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 60.
11. (12) Erik Jones, Toyota, 60.
12. (20) Tyler Reddick, Toyota, 60.
13. (15) Riley Herbst, Toyota, 60.
14. (9) Zane Smith, Ford, 60.
15. (11) Connor Zilisch #, Chevrolet, 60.
16. (18) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 60.
17. (8) Austin Cindric, Ford, 60.
18. (17) Anthony Alfredo(i), Chevrolet, 60.
19. (21) BJ McLeod, Chevrolet, 60.
20. (1) Chase Briscoe, Toyota, 60.
21. (7) Justin Allgaier(i), Chevrolet, 60.
22. (22) JJ Yeley(i), Chevrolet, 57.
