Elliott Sadler wins inaugural Xfinity Chase race at Kentucky

Elliott Sadler took the lead with four laps remaining and held off Daniel Suarez by 0.246 seconds to win the inaugural NASCAR Xfinity Series Chase race Saturday night at Kentucky Speedway.

Sadler pushed his No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevy Camaro from 15th with 50 laps remaining for his third series victory this season and the first spot in the eight-driver second round that begins at Kansas Speedway on Oct. 15.

Sadler previously competed in the inaugural Chase for the Sprint Cup in 2004, finishing ninth. He finished second in 2011 and 2012 in the Xfinity Series and is seeking his first title.

“We fought through a lot tonight,” Sadler said. “We had a 10th- or 15th-place car at best. We decided to come in, really take our time and work on it. We had good calls by (crew chief) Kevin (Meendering) and the guys to get us in position.

“This team has no quit in it, we just fight to the end. This is a great way to start the Chase.”

Sadler dedicated his victory to his mother, nicknamed “Mama Belle,” who is battling an illness and underwent two surgeries this week.

Ryan Blaney was third, followed by Sam Hornish Jr. and Matt Tifft.

Erik Jones, who entered the race with the championship lead, was denied a series win at Kentucky for the second time this season despite leading the 300-mile event five times for 100 laps. Jones’ chance for victory was derailed with 13 laps remaining when his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota was knocked out of contention after tangling with Ty Dillon’s No. 3 Chevy at the exit of Turn 4.

Truck Series

William Byron aced the inaugural Chase race in NASCAR’s Trucks Series.

The Liberty University freshman dominated Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and won for a whopping sixth time this season. This win came with extra credit: the 18-year-old Byron became the first driver to advance to the second round of the Chase.

“It’s a great run for our team,” he said. “We needed this to get back into Chase form.”

NASCAR expanded its Chase format this season to include the feeder Xfinity and Truck Series, its champions now crowned in a four-driver shootout at the season finale. The format mostly mirrors the playoff setup used to determine the Sprint Cup champion the last two years.

Trucks will use a seven-race Chase to decide a champ. In Trucks, the format is eight drivers cut down to six and then a final four at Homestead. Byron led 161 of 175 laps and was never seriously challenged the No. 9 Toyota in yet another flawless win. His Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Christopher Bell was second. Matt Crafton, non-Chase driver Tyler Reddick and Timothy Peters completed the top five.

Sprint Cup

Carl Edwards had another hard race to the finish against Matt Kenseth. The Joe Gibbs Racing teammates had skipped the track for the bike path, and what Edwards thought would be a leisurely ride between colleagues turned into a competitive duel on two wheels.

“It was a pretty hard ride,” said Edwards, laughing.

The 44-year-old Kenseth flashed the kind of speed that made Edwards wonder how he continued to turn back the clock on all modes of transport.

“He’s somehow figured out how to age backward now,” said the 37-year-old Edwards. “He’s getting faster, he’s getting stronger, he’s figured something out here for sure and it gives guys like me hope, you know?”

Kenseth has certainly figured out New Hampshire Motor Speedway since making the move in 2013 to Joe Gibbs Racing. Winless in 26 career starts at the track driving for Jack Roush, Kenseth has three wins at New Hampshire since `13 and has won the last two races here.

He had a bit of luck to win the fall 2015 race when leader Kevin Harvick’s gamble to stretch his fuel backfired and Kenseth took the lead to clinch his spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. His first New Hampshire win of this season came under similar circumstances. Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch each led more than 120 laps before faltering over the final 75 laps, paving the way for Kenseth to stretch his Magic Mile win streak.

“I think a lot of it has to do with, obviously the equipment and the people working on it, and all that stuff, but it’s hard to figure out sometimes,” Kenseth said. “This used to be probably one of my worst tracks on the circuit, honestly, and now it seems like it’s been one of our best. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be this week, but it has been in recent past.”