Winners and losers from a roller coaster NASCAR Cup race at Texas

Q: Who won the NASCAR Cup race at Texas?

Chase Elliott won the NASCAR Cup race at Texas.

Q: What was the finishing margin between Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin?

Chase Elliott finished just four tenths ahead of Denny Hamlin.

Q: How many cautions were there during the Texas NASCAR race?

There were seven cautions during the NASCAR Cup race at Texas.

Q: What were the key strategies during the Texas NASCAR Cup race?

The race featured ever-shifting strategies and hectic stage finishes, with fast cars being eliminated in unexpected ways.

Motorsport photo

After 267 laps of racing and seven cautions, just four tenths separated Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin at the checkered flag as the two drivers finished 1-2 for the second time this year.

It was a race with a lot of movement throughout the field and ever-shifting strategies. Stage finishes were hectic, fast cars were eliminated in strange ways, but in the end, it was some of the top drivers in the championship standings all battling it out for the win.

Here's a look at the biggest winners and losers from Texas:

WINNER: Chase Elliott for delivering Team Hendrick another win

Watch: Elliott breaks down how No. 9 team controlled the race

This is the earliest in a season Elliott has earned multiple wins, and so far, he is the only member of Hendrick Motorsports to reach Victory Lane this year. The ever-consistent driver of the No. 9 is now third in points, and knocking on the door of second in the standings. Despite starting 14th at Texas, he led the most laps (87) in a very impressive drive. He never really put a wheel wrong, held off Denny Hamlin in a tense final restart, and the strategy from the pit box was on point even with the chaotic nature of Sunday's race.

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LOSER: Christopher Bell after shocking Stage 1 exit from the lead

Bell thought he had a car that could compete for the win at Texas, and for good reason. He led 22 laps early, and was battling teammate Denny Hamlin for the Stage 1 win. However, that's when it all came apart as Todd Gilliland spun just in front of the leaders. Bell tried to go low, but that's where the spinning car was heading. He got clipped and the No. 20 slammed the wall, leaving him with a last-place finish and just a single point on the board. The disastrous exit dropped him four spots in the standings, making him this week's biggest loser in the championship.

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WINNER: Erik Jones as the biggest mover in points after stage win

Erik Jones, Legacy Motor Club, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., HYAK Motorsports

How about the No. 43 car? Jones stayed out with four other cars near the end of Stage 1, and managed to hang on to secure a stage win for the first time in his entire career. Those points were critical in making him the biggest mover in the championship standings this week, jumping for positions from 26th to 22nd.

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LOSER: Kyle Busch after great day comes apart in Nemechek clash

What a bad ending to such a positive weekend for the No. 8 RCR Chevrolet. Busch qualified sixth, and ran inside the top ten for most of the race. However, after restarting 11th with four laps to go, he ended up getting tangled up with John-Hunter Nemechek. Nemechek believes Busch cleared himself off his nose, while Busch believes Nemechek came down off the wall. Regardless, the result was the same, and Busch suffered some damage. Moments later, he intentionally door-slammed Nemechek and wrecked him into the outside wall. Busch limped on to finish 20th, a far cry from where he was running all day.

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WINNER: Spire as Hocevar and Suarez bring home double top ten

Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports, Daniel Suárez, Spire Motorsports, Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, Chris Buescher, RFK Racing

After their first front row sweep, this writer was eager to see if the Spire cars could stay up front all day. It wasn't that simple, as Carson Hocevar lost the lead early, and Daniel Suarez just cratered down the order. However, they persevered, and Suarez fought back to finish sixth while Hocevar was seventh. This is the third time Spire has secured a double top ten in the first eleven races of the 2026 season.

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LOSER: Joey Logano after his race ends in pit road crash

Logano went from feeling relief after narrowly avoiding a direct hit with a spinning William Byron to watching his day end in a pit road collision. During a set of pit stops after a near-miss on track, Logano was working his way down pit road when he came upon a near-stopped Cole Custer, who was attempting to squeeze into his pit box. Things were crowded, and Logano ended up running directly into the back of the Haas car, destroying both machines. Logano, whose last win came at Texas one year ago, was unable to continue, and finished 37th. The DNF has dropped the three-time series champion outside of the Chase for the time being.

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WINNER: Corey Heim ... despite late-race crash

Corey Heim

It's strange to count a crashed car among the 'winners,' but we have to give Heim some credit. The part-time Cup driver was making his tenth start at the top level and his first at Texas. After qualifying 17th, he ran well, and ended up on an alternate strategy that saw him controlling the race through multiple restarts like a veteran, and leading 69 laps! Only Elliott ended up leading more. Unfortunately, his race came to an end late when he backed it into the wall. Even still, it was a glimpse at what Heim could do at the sharp end of the Cup grid.

LOSER: Ross Chastain for making an unforced error, spoiling solid day

Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing

Trackhouse was in desperate need for a good day. Outside of drafting tracks, Chastain entered the weekend with zero top 15s. However, he had a decent day going at Texas, where he has finished second twice before. Approaching the final set of green-flag pit stops, Chastain was running eighth and had the pace to climb a little bit higher up the order. Unfortunately for him, he never got the chance due to a costly mistake. He sped on pit road, ruining the day for the No. 1 team and leaving him with 26th-place finish.

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