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NASCAR at Nashville race results, highlights: Ross Chastain silences doubters, picks up third career Cup Series win

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David Suggs
• 10 min read
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It had been a hectic few weeks for Ross Chastain, who has become a lightning rod for criticism in the NASCAR Cup Series.

But on Sunday, he showed up and showed out. The result? A trip to victory lane.

The Watermelon Man could do no wrong at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday night. He drove past the stout Joe Gibbs Racing duo of Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin to capture his third career Cup Series victory.

The normally aggressive Chastain was fairly mild-mannered throughout the night. After picking up his first career Cup Series pole, Chastain seemed poised to impress.

He and Tyler Reddick appeared to have the fastest cars heading into the race. Rocking up on Nashville's concrete carpet, Chastain looked at home. He was calm as he made his way around lapped traffic, aware that his thoroughbred of a racecar had what was needed to take the checkered flag.

Truex gave him the best run for his money, but where there's a Ross, there's a way. And after back-to-back-to-back disappointing results (22nd at Charlotte and St. Louis, 10th at Sonoma), the driver of the No. 1 car got himself back to where he expects to be.

Now comes the hard part for Chastain: putting together that same type of display week in and week out. If he does, he may be a championship contender again.

MORE: Watch the Ally 400 with Fubo (free trial)

The Sporting News tracked live updates from Sunday’s race at Nashville. Scroll through below to see all the action as it unfolded in this year’s Ally 400.

NASCAR at Nashville results

(All results are unofficial)

Place Driver Car No. Team
1 Ross Chastain 1 Trackhouse Racing
2 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
3 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
4 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
5 Kyle Larson 5 Hendrick Motorsports
6 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
7 Christopher Bell 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
8 Erik Jones 43 Legacy Motor Club
9 Kyle Busch 8 Richard Childress Racing
10 A.J. Allmendinger 16 Kaulig Racing

NASCAR at Nashville live updates, highlights from 2023 race

(All times Eastern)

10:06 p.m.: Chastain takes it! He's in the playoffs! The Watermelon Man gets it done!

10:04 p.m.: Last push by Truex. He's got the deficit down to .58 seconds. Just three laps remaining, but it's not looking great for the No. 19.

10:01 p.m.: Truex's tires have lost grip. It'll be hard for him to push up on the throttle. That will only help the No. 1, who is seven laps away from his first win of the season.

9:58 p.m.: Chastain has looked to have had better speed on the long run. His lead over Truex grows to nearly a second. 13 laps to go but things are going swimmingly for Trackhouse as it stands.

9:50 p.m.: Bowman subsides, giving way to Chastain and Truex. 30 laps to go and plenty of lap traffic to maneuver through. Still, it's Chastain out in front by a hair.

9:44 p.m.: Chastain still holding firm in P2, only bettered by Bowman, who has yet to make his way to pit road. When the No. 48 comes in to pit, that should bring the Trackhouse star back to the front.

9:34 p.m.: Kevin Harvick pops his right rear tire, limping his way into pit road. Stopped the cycle of pit stops for a bit, but it will continue after the No. 4 rolls on in.

9:32 p.m.: Chastain with a one second edge over the rest of the competition. Just 64 laps to go here at Nashville.

9:28 p.m.: It's been a while since Chastain has been in clean air for a prolonged period. But the Trackhouse star just zipped in front of Hamlin to take first place on Lap 231. Been a consistent showing for the No. 1 car. That consistency just paid off courtesy of slick steering to take his way beyond the No. 11.

9:15 p.m.: JGR showing out through 215 laps. Hamlin and Truex been head and shoulders above the rest of the pack.

9:00 p.m.: Hamlin takes the stage. Fourth stage win of the season for the JGR star.

8:56 p.m.: Six laps to go and Hamlin holds the slight lead over Truex. Chastain not too far behind, either.

8:46 p.m.: And it's Hamlin who takes the high line, nabbing himself first place in the process. Entertaining stuff from JGR.

8:44 p.m.: Joe Gibbs Racing teammates at the front. It's Truex and Hamlin working for first. 31 laps to go. Some serious distance between Truex, Hamlin and the rest of the pack. Good contest here by the longtime teammates.

8:35 p.m.: CAUTION! It's Blaney, who makes contact with the inside wall after a hectic restart. The front of his car is folded like an accordion. Oof.

8:33 p.m.: The nature of the caution is quite helpful for the likes of Bubba Wallace, who faded quickly after a decent start. He'll be in P4 on the race restart, caught behind Truex and Hamlin. Keselowski in the mix as well.

8:24 p.m.: CAUTION! Reddick's right rear tire flies off its moorings, rollicking through pit road like a tumbleweed. Shouldn't be too much damage for the No. 45 car, although that will be frustrating for Reddick, who put himself in position to compete for much of the day.

8:15 p.m.: Truex cruising out in front 35 laps into Stage 2. The Joe Gibbs Racing star has been a man possessed this year, accruing the most regular-season points thus far. One look at his display and you can see why.

8:03 p.m.: Three wide at the front of the pack as the green flag is waved to signal the start of Stage 2. Chastain, Byron and Truex all are competing for that top spot. Looks like Truex is going to take the prime spot, getting into the apron to take advantage of the tightness of Byron and Chastain.

7:54 p.m.: Reddick takes Stage 1! Strong showing by the 23XI Racing star so far. Michael Jordan would be proud.

7:52 p.m.: Lap traffic should pose some challenges for Reddick and Chastain, especially as William Byron (P3) and Martin Truex Jr. (P4) close the gap.

7:48 p.m.: A.J. Allmendinger took the checkered flag in last night's Xfinity Race. Looks like he's using that knowledge to his advantage thus far: he's gained nine spots on his starting position and sits inside the Top-10.

7:37 p.m.: Reddick splits through the pack after Chastain gets caught up with Gragson, who was attempting to stay on the lead lap. The No. 45 car is out to the front. Let's see how he handles the clean air.

7:29 p.m.: Michael McDowell with a pass-through penalty after making contact with the orange chalk heading into pit road. Not ideal.

7:28 p.m.: The wave of pit stops starts as we hit the midway point of Stage 1. Alex Bowman to the front of the pack.

7:17 p.m.: Kyle Busch the first driver into pit road. Looks like his right rear tire was slightly flattened. Better to shake off the cobwebs early rather than later, though.

7:11 p.m.: Good contest between Bubba Wallace and Denny Hamlin in P8. Clean, hard-racing as the two jostle for position. Looks like Hamlin has the advantage on the short end.

7:09 p.m.: Justin Haley showed off impressive speed during qualifiers. However, looks like he's having some trouble through the first few laps. He's already down three spots on his starting position.

7:05 p.m.: And we're off! Ross Chastain and Tyler Reddick lead the pack to start.

6:40 p.m.: And here's another star doing their thing in Music City. Gotta wonder who is more popular between these two: Chase Elliott or Olivia Dunne?

6:35 p.m.: Never seen this person in my life. Don't think I fit their demographic. Either way, Noah Gragson looks delighted.

6:30 p.m.: Radar looking good for the start of Sunday's race. Good news indeed.

What channel is the NASCAR race on today?

  • TV channel: NBC (U.S.) | TSN5 (Canada)
  • Live stream: Peacock, Fubo

The Ally 400 will be broadcast on NBC in the United States. Canadian viewers can follow the action on TSN5.

Sunday's race represents the first to be aired away from Fox's family of networks this season. NBC will handle the coverage for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.

MORE: What to know about TV channel change for second half of season

Veteran broadcaster Rick Allen will lead NBC's coverage, serving as the race's lap-by-lap announcer. He'll be joined in the booth by Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte.

Fans can watch online via Peacock or Fubo, which offers a free trial.

MORE: Date, time, TV channels for every NASCAR Cup Series race in 2023

NASCAR at Nashville starting lineup 2023

Starting pos. Driver Car No. Team
1 Ross Chastain 1 Trackhouse Racing
2 Tyler Reddick 45 23XI Racing
3 Justin Haley 31 Kaulig Racing
4 Joey Logano 22 Team Penske
5 William Byron 24 Hendrick Motorsports
6 Martin Truex Jr. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing
7 Kyle Larson 5 Hendrick Motorsports
8 Denny Hamlin 11 Joe Gibbs Racing
9 Bubba Wallace 23 23XI Racing
10 Daniel Suarez 99 Trackhouse Racing
11 Kyle Busch 8 Richard Childress Racing
12 Chris Buescher 17 RFK Racing
13 Ryan Blaney 12 Team Penske
14 Chase Elliott 9 Hendrick Motorsports
15 Alex Bowman 48 Hendrick Motorsports
16 Ty Gibbs 54 Joe Gibbs Racing
17 Kevin Harvick 4 Stewart-Haas Racing
18 Chase Briscoe 14 Stewart-Haas Racing
19 AJ Allmendinger 16 Kaulig Racing
20 Brad Keselowski 6 RFK Racing
21 Aric Almirola 10 Stewart-Haas Racing
22 Christopher Bell 20 Joe Gibbs Racing
23 Erik Jones 43 Legacy Motor Club
24 Austin Cindric 2 Team Penske
25 Ryan Preece 41 Stewart-Haas Racing
26 Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing
27 Todd Gilliland 38 Rick Ware Racing
28 Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 47 JTG Daugherty Racing
29 J.J. Yeley 51 Rick Ware Racing
30 Noah Gragson 42 Legacy Motor Club
31 Harrison Burton 21 Wood Brothers Racing
32 Brennan Poole 15 Rick Ware Racing
33 Michael McDowell 34 Front Row Motorsports
34 Ty Dillon 77 Spire Motorsports
35 Josh Bilicki 78 Live Fast Motorsports
36 Corey LaJoie 7 Spire Motorsports
Author(s)
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David Suggs
David Suggs is a content producer at The Sporting News.
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