A look at the winners and losers after Saturday night’s Clash at the Coliseum.
WINNERS
NASCAR — With Los Angeles facing rain for the next several days, officials moved the Clash up a day. While having the race on FS1 instead of Fox cost NASCAR potential viewers and having to redeem tickets for those who bought seats for Sunday’s event is a loss for the sport, completing the event, instead of waiting days to run it, was a win.
Denny Hamlin — The star of the Netflix series followed up the show’s debut last week by winning the Clash. After his victory Saturday night, Hamlin told fans: “You know I beat your favorite driver again, right?” Every sport needs an antagonist and Hamlin has willingly taken the role.
Fans and drama — There was a lot of drama between drivers. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. got out of his car during the halfway break to have a chat with John Hunter Nemechek. Stenhouse also bumped fenders with Michael McDowell during a caution. After some previous contact, Kyle Larson spun Bubba Wallace. Ross Chastain had contact with Tyler Reddick after the checkered flag. Joey Logano and Ty Gibbs had a difference of opinion in the garage area after the race.
Kyle Busch — While he didn’t win, his runner-up finish gave him a top-three finish at all three races at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Ryan Blaney — After needing the provisional to make the field, the reigning Cup champion went from starting last to finishing third.
LOSERS
Ty Gibbs — Led a race-high 84 laps but finished 18th due to chaos in the final laps. Despite Gibbs’ result, Denny Hamlin was high on his teammate after the race, saying: “I think he’s going to have tremendous success this year. I think he’s going to be part of the playoffs. I don’t think that’s going to be a big shock to anyone.”
Christopher Bell — He was the only Joe Gibbs Racing driver to fail to qualify for the 23-car Clash.
Chris Buescher — Failed to make the feature race of the Clash for the third consecutive year.
Austin Dillon — He finished second last year and third two years ago at the Coliseum. He failed to make the feature this year.
Christine Lake is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. With an extensive background in sports journalism, he covers everything from major league championships to grassroots sports events. When she’s not on the field or at the stadium, you’ll find Christine coaching youth sports teams.
