Ross Chastain runs side-by-side with Kyle Busch in Sunday's Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas. Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
One week after teammate Daniel Suarez finished fourth, Chastain again put Trackhouse Racing in the spotlight
Trackhouse Racing keeps knocking on the door of its first NASCAR Cup Series victory.
Last week, it was Daniel Suarez who come oh-so-close to taking the checkers at Fontana before finishing fourth.
This week it was Ross Chastain, otherwise known as “The Watermelon Man” for his off-season job as a watermelon farmer in his native Florida.
Like Suarez, Chastain has yet to win his first race at NASCAR’s highest level. But that would have been hard to believe to an outsider watching Sunday’s Cup race, given the 29-year-old’s outstanding performance at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Starting the race from 18th place, Chastain quickly made his way up front and led a race-high 83 laps – also more than the total number of laps (75) he had previously led in his entire Cup Series career!
Chastain appeared to be in contention for the race victory for the majority of the afternoon before having to settle for third place after an overtime restart that saw Hendrick teammates Alex Bowman and Kyle Larson duke it out for the finish.
Regardless, Chastain was enthusiastic about his great finish.
“It's a dream come true,” Chastain said following the race. “This is what all the work is for. This is why we train and try to build our whole lives and careers once we realize we can race at this level, is to have race cars like that.
“I couldn’t be more proud of Trackhouse, and thankful for (team majority owner) Justin Marks and Chevrolet.”
Chastain then thanked a former Cup Series competitor and another rather unique source for his great run Sunday.
“It took a lot of patience inside the car,” Chastain said. “It’s tough for me to not get too aggressive and (maintain) a lot of neutral thinking. (Former Cup driver) Josh Wise and a book by Trevor Moawad really helped me today. That’s progress.”
Longtime NASCAR fans will obviously recognize Wise’s name. The California native made 156 Cup Series starts between 2011 and 2016 before becoming an athletic trainer for several drivers, including Chastain.
Moward, on the other hand, was a sports psychologist who worked with noteworthy athletes including Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and Chicago Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman. Sadly, Moward passed away in 2021.
While Chastain’s teammate Suarez did not have a similar fate Sunday – he finished last in the 37-car field after being taken out in a Lap 92 crash – Marks was still incredibly proud, tweeting out:
“Incredibly proud of the 1 group. Gutted for the 99 group. Best moment of the day for me: The entire 99 pit crew in the 1 pit box with 25 laps to go supporting their brothers. This is @TeamTrackhouse.”
If Sunday showed NASCAR fans and competitors anything, it’s that the question is not if Ross Chastain – or Suarez, for that matter – will ever win a Cup Series race, but when?
Follow Michael Eubanks on Twitter @MEubanks_writer
Michael Eubanks will cover IndyCar and other series for AutoRacingDigest.com. He previously was the IndyCar beat writer for NBCSports.com's MotorSportsTalk site.