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Richmond NASCAR: Clint Bowyer wins as Jeff Gordon grabs Chase spot

Clint Bowyer claimed NASCAR Sprint Cup victory at Richmond on a fuel-economy run, while Jeff Gordon finished second to secure a Chase spot

The final race of the regular season turned out to be dramatic for those fighting for the final play-off wildcard spot, which changed hands several times during the rain-affected Saturday night event.

Following a delay of around two hours, the race finally got underway only to be stopped on lap 152, still 48 short of half-distance, for another 51-minute pause before the weather allowed the event to resume.

During the first 200 laps it seemed unlikely that Joe Gibbs Racing's Kyle Busch would lose his wildcard spot as he drove a controlled race despite battling handling issues with his #18 Toyota. At the time many of his rivals for a Chase spot were either a lap down or not showing enough speed to contend for a win.

However it all changed during the sixth caution of the race, caused by further rain, as some of the frontrunners elected to pit while others, like Busch, chose to stay out and gain track position, which ultimately turned out to be the wrong call.

The JGR racer and another three drivers who restarted from the front would immediately drop back due to their grip handicap, while the Stewart-Haas duo went on to alternate the top spot, Ryan Newman suddenly getting in position to claim a wildcard when passing his team-mate Tony Stewart for the lead 100 laps from the end.

However Bowyer, who had spun earlier on the front-stretch due to a left-rear puncture, came flying back through the field to get the lead 13 laps later. He managed to go the rest of the way without stopping for fuel again on the way to claiming his second win of the season, which places him as the seventh seed starting the Chase.

"Unbelievable," said Bowyer. "To be able to win again, everything's new, [crew chief] Brian Pattie and everybody on this team, I'm so proud of them... To be able to bounce back from that and get a win, get that momentum, heading into this Chase is exactly what we needed to."

But while Bowyer controlled the race up front, Busch's debacle unfolded as he struggled with his worn tyres, dropping a lap down before being called for a new set and fuel on lap 335, having a delayed stop due to a missing lug-nut under green and thus dropping three laps behind leader Bowyer.

Meanwhile Gordon, his main rival for the wildcard spot, was charging through the field. The Hendrick driver recovered from a poor start to his race, when balance issues put him a lap down, but the four-time champion suddenly got in position to snatch the wildcard from Busch in the deciding stages as his rival struggled to make any progress.

Gordon, who had missed on a second season victory last week at Atlanta, passed veteran Mark Martin for second place seven laps from the end with an aggressive move, finishing a second behind Bowyer. Behind him Busch could only manage a 16th-place finish, which meant he missed the Chase by three points over his former team-mate.

"Went from last week to being the most disappointed I've ever been to finish second to the most excited I've ever been to finish second," said Gordon. "Wow, what a race for us!"

As expected, Kasey Kahne locked the fist wildcard thanks to his two wins, meaning all four Hendrick Motorsports drivers will be in title contention during this year's Chase, which starts next week at Chicagoland.

Results - 400 laps:

Pos  Driver              Team/Car                         Time/Gap
 1.  Clint Bowyer        Waltrip Toyota               2h59m58.000s
 2.  Jeff Gordon         Hendrick Chevrolet               + 1.198s
 3.  Mark Martin         Waltrip Toyota                   + 1.953s
 4.  Tony Stewart        Stewart-Haas Chevrolet           + 3.163s
 5.  Matt Kenseth        Roush Fenway Ford                + 6.446s
 6.  Jeff Burton         Childress Chevrolet             + 10.735s
 7.  Brad Keselowski     Penske Dodge                    + 12.066s
 8.  Ryan Newman         Stewart-Haas Chevrolet          + 13.043s
 9.  Greg Biffle         Roush Fenway Ford               + 13.767s
10.  Kevin Harvick       Childress Chevrolet             + 17.306s
11.  Sam Hornish Jr      Penske Dodge                    + 20.578s
12.  Kasey Kahne         Hendrick Chevrolet                + 1 lap
13.  Jimmie Johnson      Hendrick Chevrolet                + 1 lap
14.  Dale Earnhardt Jr   Hendrick Chevrolet                + 1 lap
15.  Marcos Ambrose      Petty Ford                        + 1 lap
16.  Kyle Busch          Gibbs Toyota                      + 1 lap
17.  Carl Edwards        Roush Fenway Ford                 + 1 lap
18.  Denny Hamlin        Gibbs Toyota                      + 1 lap
19.  Landon Cassill      BK Toyota                         + 1 lap
20.  Juan Pablo Montoya  Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet       + 1 lap
21.  Martin Truex Jr     Waltrip Toyota                    + 1 lap
22.  Jamie McMurray      Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet      + 2 laps
23.  Paul Menard         Childress Chevrolet              + 2 laps
24.  Regan Smith         Furniture Row Chevrolet          + 2 laps
25.  Bobby Labonte       JTG Daugherty Toyota             + 3 laps
26.  Aric Almirola       Petty Ford                       + 3 laps
27.  Travis Kvapil       BK Toyota                        + 3 laps
28.  Kurt Busch          Phoenix Chevrolet                + 4 laps
29.  Casey Mears         Germain Ford                     + 4 laps
30.  Joey Logano         Gibbs Toyota                     + 4 laps
31.  David Gilliland     Front Row Ford                   + 5 laps
32.  David Ragan         Front Row Ford                   + 5 laps
33.  Dave Blaney         Baldwin Chevrolet                + 5 laps
34.  David Reutimann     Baldwin Chevrolet                + 7 laps
35.  Ken Schrader        FAS Lane Ford                    + 7 laps
36.  Stephen Leicht      Circle Sport Chevrolet          + 10 laps

Retirements:

     David Stremme       Inception Toyota                 127 laps
     Joe Nemechek        NEMCO Toyota                      90 laps
     Scott Riggs         R3 Chevrolet                      78 laps
     Mike Bliss          Humphrey Smith Toyota             70 laps
     Michael McDowell    Parsons Ford                      63 laps
     Josh Wise           Front Row Ford                    57 laps
     Reed Sorenson       Humphrey Smith Chevrolet          57 laps

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