Kevin Harvick had a nearly flawless day at Atlanta Motor Speedway, but his only blemish cost him a win Sunday. It paved the way for Brad Keselowski to win the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500.
Harvick dominated for most of the day and was leading with 14 laps to go when he was penalized for speeding on pit road. He had to restart at the tail of the field.
MORE: Atlanta repave will make track faster, but drivers don't like it
Keselowski passed Kyle Larson with six laps to go for the win. Matt Kenseth finished third, followed by Kasey Kahne and Chase Elliott.
“We had a lot of adversity today. There’s no doubt about that,” said Keselowski, who won for the first time at Atlanta and for the 22nd time in his career. “These races aren’t easy. They’re 500 miles, and a lot can happen, and when you think you’ve got it, they slip away. I know how it goes.
“This one kind of fell in our lap at the end, and my team put it all together when it counted.”
The win gives Keselowski 40 points and five playoff points. Keselowski also earned an additional 13 points from strong finishes in Stage 1 and 2.
Harvick led for 293 of 325 laps Sunday and won both of the first two stages.
“Yeah, this place, for whatever reason, I just feel like I’m snakebitten,” said Harvick, who won his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at the Georgia track in 2001 and hasn’t won here since. “It’s my own doing today. I really didn’t think I was even close (to speeding) on pit lane.
“It gets to bouncing around, and I thought I was being conservative. Apparently, I wasn’t. ... I was just pushing it too hard.”
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a rough day. He finished 30th. In Stage 1, Earnhardt got a flat tire and was also issued a pit-road penalty.
A number of drivers were caught speeding, too. Jimmie Johnson was caught speeding twice.
Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 results
1. Brad Keselowski
2. Kyle Larson
3. Matt Kenseth
4. Kasey Kahne
5. Chase Elliott
6. Joey Logano
7. Kurt Busch
8. Martin Truex Jr.
9. Kevin Harvick
10. Jamie McMurray
11. Clint Bowyer
12. Trevor Bayne
13. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
14. Erik Jones
15. Ty Dillon
16. Kyle Busch
17. Danica Patrick
18. Ryan Blaney
19. Jimmie Johnson
20. Cole Whitt
21. Daniel Suarez
22. Landon Cassill
23. David Ragan
24. Chris Buescher
25. Paul Menard
26. AJ Allmendinger
27. Aric Almirola
28. Matt DiBenedetto
29. Michael McDowell
30. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
31. Reed Sorenson
32 Austin Dillon
33 Jeffrey Earnhardt
34 Corey LaJoie
35 Ryan Newman
36 Derrike Cope
37 Gray Gaulding
38 Denny Hamlin
39 Cody Ware
Race statistics
Average speed of race winner: 140.898 mph.
Time of race: 3 hours, 33 minutes, 8 seconds. Margin of Victory: 0.564 seconds.
Caution flags: Six for 32 laps.
Lead changes: Nine among five drivers.
Lap leaders: K. Harvick 1-36; R. Newman 37-39; K. Harvick 40-127; J. Johnson 128-129; B. Keselowski 130-141; K. Harvick 142-264; B. Keselowski 265-266; K. Harvick 267-311; K. Larson 312-318; B. Keselowski 319-325.
Leaders summary (Driver, times led, laps led): K. Harvick four times for 292 laps; B. Keselowski three times for 21 laps; K. Larson one time for seven laps; R. Newman one time for three laps; J. Johnson one time for two laps.
Stage No. 1 Top 10: 4,2,24,78,22,31,17,11,42,48
Stage No. 2 Top 10: 4,24,31,78,42,3,2,77,14,6
Sunday's race was the final one on Atlanta's 20-year-old racing surface before the track undergoes a repave. The condition of the 1.54-mile asphalt track, the second-oldest racing surface in the Cup Series, went from being one of NASCAR's fastest tracks to recently being known for its slickness and chaotic nature. The makeover will make the track significantly faster and safer.
From Saturday's Xfinity race to Atlanta qualifying, here's your one-stop shop for all of Sporting News' top NASCAR stories from this week.
Sunday, March 5 — Race Day
Kase: Kasey Kahne recovers from early issues to run fourth at Atlanta
Hustlin': Sneaky-fast Matt Kenseth salvages third-place run
Frustrated: Another strong run for Chase Elliott comes up short
NASCAR police: Brad Keselowski wins after pit road mishap costs Kevin Harvick
Wait, what? Fan accidentally oils down Kyle Busch's tires in Atlanta garage
Saturday, March 4 — Xfinity race
Encumbered finish: Kyle Busch wins, fails post-race inspection
Best of the rest
Vegas, baby! Las Vegas close to getting second NASCAR Cup race
Starting grid: Kevin Harvick outruns Ryan Newman for pole; complete starting lineup
Nice: Kurt Busch ended up partying with Rob Gronkowski until 3 a.m. after Daytona 500 win
Racing itch: Carl Edwards open to being substitute NASCAR driver in retirement
In-car audio: Kurt Busch cusses out Jimmie Johnson after 'Big One' in Daytona 500
Do the Dew: Monster understands Hendrick Motorsports' reluctance to use sponsor logo
Daytona 500: Look back on a crash-filled Great American Race
Material from Reid Spencer of the NASCAR Wire Service was used in this report.