After finishing in the top 10 the last two races, Jimmie Johnson managed to win his first race in NASCAR’s Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Johnson dominated the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a race that was moved to Sunday due to the rain that Hurricane Matthew brought to the Carolinas region.
Johnson survived a race in which some of the favorites had accidents or suffered mechanical problems, forcing them to retire or fall to the back of the pack.
Kevin Harvick abandoned the race due to an engine problem that killed the power of his car. Almost at the same time Joey Logano hit the wall for a second time after suffering a flat tire.
Once the race restarted after a yellow flag on lap 259, a 12-car crash involved Austin Dillon, Martin Truex Jr., Chase Elliot and Kyle Busch, among others. Truex survived the pile-up but ended the race in 28th position.
Another driver that suffered a major blow was Denny Hamlin, when he was running in second place when his engine blew up on lap 308.
With these results Johnson earned an automatic berth to the Eliminator Round, in which only the top eight drivers will stay in contention; while Harvick, Logano, Dillon and Elliot were eliminated from the Chase. The next race will be the STP 400 at Kansas Speedway on October 16.
Chase for the Cup Standings
| 1. Jimmie Johnson | 3045 points |
| 2. Matt Kenseth | 3040 points |
| 3. Kyle Busch | 3036 points |
| 4. Brad Keselowski | 3034 points |
| 5. Kurt Busch | 3033 points |
| 6. Carl Edwards | 3029 points |
| 7. Martin Truex Jr. | 3028 points |
| 8. Denny Hamlin | 3012 points |
| 9. Austin Dillon | 3009 points |
| 10. Chase Elliot | 3009 points |
| 11. Joey Logano | 3006 points |
| 12 Kevin Harvick | 3004 points |
