From nascar.com
Jimmie Johnson won the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway for the third straight year, holding off runner-up Kevin Harvick and third-place Brad Keselowski after Sunday’s AAA Texas 500 went to two overtimes. Johnson, who was eliminated from the Chase two weeks ago at Talladega, led the field to the green flag on Lap 340, the second attempt at a green-white-checkered-flag finish, with Keselowski to his outside. As both drivers rolled through the first two corners wide open, Johnson inched ahead, ultimately clearing Keselowski’s Ford and pulling away. Harvick passed Keselowski for second place but couldn’t catch Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet, which crossed the finish line .513 seconds ahead of Harvick’s No. 4 car.
But it was the first attempt at a green-white-checkered finish that caused all the controversy and helped to scramble the Chase standings with only next Sunday’s event at Phoenix International Raceway left to determine which four drivers race for the series championship Nov. 16 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Gordon was the race leader at the time and picked the outside lane for a restart on lap 335 with Johnson to his inside. Keselowski restarted third and tried to split the two Hendrick Motorsports drivers—in what Harvick would later call “bulldoze mode”—and ran out of room. Contact from Keselowski’s car cut Gordon’s left rear tire, causing Gordon to spin on the backstretch, which in turn brought out the record 13th caution of the race. Gordon finished 29th and dropped from first to fourth in the Chase standings, just one point clear of 25th-place finisher and Coors Light Polesitter Matt Kenseth in fifth. In the pit lane after the race, Kenseth, Keselowski and Gordon came to a fight, with crewmembers and officials trying to separate them.
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