After taking the weekend off for Easter, the NASCAR Cup Series returns for some Saturday night short track racing at Martinsville Speedway for the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500.
Mother Nature has plagued the races with rain showers. The Xfinity Series race has been postponed due to the rain and the start of the Cup Series race is delayed for a bit to get the track ready for racing.
Daniel Suarez was scheduled to start the race in eleventh place, but after it was discovered during the pre-race inspection process that the number 99 car had added ballast, a rule book violation, Suarez will have to start the race from the back of the field. Suarez also loses his crew chief Travis Mack for the race and both Suarez and Trackhouse Racing will lose 10 points for the infraction.
Suarez is not alone in having to start the race from the back of the field. The number eight car driven by Tyler Reddick will have to drop to the back of the field after the crew made unapproved adjustments.
Corey LaJoie, James Davison,
and Justin Haley will have to move to the back of the field after multiple failures during the inspection process.
Joey Logano will sit on the pole with Denny Hamlin starting alongside on the front row.
The starting lineup for the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500:
Joey Logano
Denny Hamlin
William Byron
Ryan Blaney
Chase Elliott
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Martin Truex Jr
Ryan Newman
Kevin Harvick
Brad Keselowski
Daniel Suarez – moved to the back of the field
Kyle Busch
Tyler Reddick – moved to the back of the field
Michael McDowell
Chris Buescher
Erik Jones
Ryan Preece
Austin Dillon
Kyle Larson
Alex Bowman
Kurt Busch
Matt DiBenedetto
Christopher Bell
Chase Briscoe
Bubba Wallace
Cole Custer
Ross Chastain
JJ Yeley
Quin Houff
Justin Haley – moved to the back of the field
Aric Almirola
Cody Ware
Josh Bilicki
Corey LaJoie – moved to the back of the field
Anthony Alfredo
BJ McLeod
James Davison – moved to the back of the field
Stages one and two of the race are 130 laps each with stage three lasting 240 laps for a total of 500 laps around the half mile paperclip shaped track.
NASCAR has called for a competition caution on lap 60.
After an hour delay for rain and track drying, the engines fire and the drivers get moving. The drivers are making some extended pace laps to allow the track dryers to dry out pit road where the cars had been parked.
Joey Logano brings the field down for the green flag start of the race from the inside lane and jumps out in front for the lead after the waving of the green flag by NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace.
Lap two, the top five ae Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott.
The shortest track on the circuit at a half mile, it will not take long for the leaders to reach slower traffic.
Lap five, Denny Hamlin passes Joey Logano for the lead.
Lap six, the top five are Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, and Martin Truex Jr.
Lap eight, Denny Hamlin has a lead of over a second on William Byron.
Lap 10, the top five are Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, and Martin Truex Jr.
Lap 12, William Byron has closed the gap on leader Denny Hamlin to under a second; Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Lap 14, after having to start the race from the back of the field, Daniel Suarez has moved up to 30th place and Tyler Reddick is in 29th.
Lap 17, Denny Hamlin has a one second lead on William Byron; Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, and Ryan Blaney round out the top five.
Lap 20, Quin Houff is the only driver not on the lead lap in 37th place.
Lap 21, the leaders are approaching slower traffic.
Lap 22, Denny Hamlin has increased his lead on William Byron to over a second and a half; Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr, and Ryan Blaney round out the top five.
Lap 24, Chase Elliott reports that his brakes are “too cold” and is turning off the fans to warm them up.
Lap 25, Joey Logano is challenging William Byron for second.
Lap 28, Denny Hamlin holds on to his lead of over a second and a half on Joey Logano; Martin Truex Jr, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Lap 35, Denny Hamlin continues to lead the race with a lead of over a second and a half; Joey Logano, Martin TruexJr, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
The caution flag comes out for James Davison when he spins out and contacts the wall.
Drivers can make a pit stop for tires and adjustments but cannot fuel the cars until the competition caution. Many of the drivers come down pit road for service.
Denny Hamlin wins the race off of pit road; followed by Joey Logano.
All of the lead lap cars came down pit road but the lap down cars stayed out on the track. There are 29 cars on the lead lap. Anthony Alfredo is the “lucky dog” and will make it 30 cars on the lead lap.
NASCAR has red flagged the race when heavy rains returned with 42 laps in the books.
NASCAR Hall of Famer and former FOX Sports broadcaster Darrell Waltrip had a long standing theory he termed “the vortex theory”. As long as the drivers were making laps on the track at speed, the rains will stay away. His theory was that the heat from the engines would keep the rain from falling on the track. James Davison wrecked bringing out the yellow flag and slowing the cars…the rains began falling.
After a delay of an hour, heavier rains began to fall and NASCAR has called the race with a scheduled resumption of the race at 4pm on Sunday afternoon following the Xfinity Series race.
It’s a warm sunny day at Martinsville Speedway and the drivers are ready to go with the completion of the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500.
Points leader Denny Hamlin leads the race,
James Davison and Justin Haley are the only driver not on the lead lap.
The lineup at the time the race was red flagged:
Denny Hamlin
Joey Logano
Ryan Blaney
Martin Truex Jr
Chase Elliott
William Byron
Brad Keselowski
Kyle Busch
Kevin Harvick
Kyle Larson
Ryan Preece
Alex Bowman
Austin Dillon
Chris Buescher
Matt DiBenedetto
Erik Jones
Bubba Wallace
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Kurt Busch
Ryan Newman
Aric Almirola
Christopher Bell
Tyler Reddick
Ross Chastain
Daniel Suarez
Cole Custer
Chase Briscoe
Michael McDowell
Corey LaJoie
Anthony Alfredo
Justin Haley
JJ Yeley
BJ McLeod
Josh Bilicki
Cody Ware
Quin Houff
James Davison
The cars are moving under the yellow flag with the laps counting.
The drivers who did not pit during the caution flag on Saturday night take the wave around.
After the Xfinity Series concluded their race and laid rubber on the track, NASCAR has announced that there will be no competition caution on lap 60. The teams were allowed to top off their fuel prior to getting back out on the track.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the restart of the race on lap 47 and gets out in frton to hold on to the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Martin Treux Jr.
Kurt Busch brings out the caution flag on lap 51 after making contact with Erik Jones and spinning out. He keeps the car off of the wall.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart from the inside lane on lap 57 with Ryan Blaney on the outside. Hamlin gets out in front to hold on to the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Martin Truex Jr.
Martin Truex Jr gets around Joey Logano for fourth place.
Lap 61, Denny Hamlin has a haf second lead on Ryan Blaney with 34 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 65, Denny Hamlin has a lead of over half a second on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano round out the top five.
JJ Yeley has made an unscheduled trip down pit road.
Lap 69, Ryan Blaney has closed the gap on leader Denny Hamlin to under half a second.
After having to start the race from the back of the field due to penalties, Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suarez have entered the top 20.
Lap 73, Ryan Blaney has caught up to leader Denny Hamlin and is challenging for the lead.
Lap 75, Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin battle for the lead.
Lap 76, Ryan Blaney is the new leader.
Lap 77, the top five are Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano.
JJ Yeley returns to the track six laps down.
After being involved in an on track incident, Kurt Busch has moved up to 22nd place.
Lap 82, Ryan Blaney has pulled out to a lead of over a second on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano round out the top five.
Lap 85, Daniel Suarez comes down pit road with a possible tire issue. FOX Sports broadcasters report that some of the teams may or may not have gotten all five of the lug nuts properly secured during the caution flag before the race was halted on Saturday night.
Lap 92, with over 400 laps remaining in the race, the drivers are already getting very aggressive on the track; beating and banging with their fellow drivers.
Lap 95, Ryan Blaney has a near one second lead on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano round out the top five.
Lap 100, there are 25 cars on the lead lap.
Ryan Blaney has extended his lead on Denny Hamlin to over a second; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
AT just over half a mile, Martinsville is the shortest track on the NASCAR circuit; as a result, it does not take long for the leaders to encounter slower traffic.
Lap 105, Ryan Blaney continues to pass cars; there are 22 cars on the lead lap. Blaney has a lead of over a second on Denny Hamlin with Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson rounding out the top five.
Twenty laps to go in stage one and the drivers are getting three wide in an attempt to stay on the lead lap.
Lap 112, Ryan Blaney now has a second and a half lead on Denny Hamlin with 22 cars on the lead lap. Third place driver Martin Truex Jr is nearly three seconds behind Blaney.
Lap 115, Ryan Blaney has pulled out to a two second lead on Deny Hamlin. Drivers are making laps at around 20 seconds per lap.
Ten laps remain in stage one; Ryan Blaney has a lead of nearly two seconds on Denny Hamlin with 2 cars on the lead lap.
Five to go in stage one; the top five are Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, Chase Ellliott, and Kyle Larson.
Ryan Blaney wins stage one for his second stage win of the season.
The top 10 at the end of stage one:
Ryan Blaney
Denny Hamlin
Martin Truex Jr
Chase Elliott
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Alex Bowma
Brad Keselowski
Joey Logano
Christopher Bell
Drivers come down pit road for service with Ryan Blaney winning the race off of pit road; Denny Hamlin comes out second.
Ryan Blaney brings the field down for the green flag start of stage two from the inside lane and goes nose to nose with Denny Hamlin in a battle for the lead before Denny Hamlin edges out in front.
Lap 142, the top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Larson, and William Byron. There are 22 cars on the lead lap.
All 37 drivers that started the race are still out on the track.
Lap 148, the top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Busch, and William Byron.
Lap 151, Denny Hamlin has a lead of over a second on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Busch, and William Byron round out the top five.
Lap 154, Alex Bowman gets around team mate William Byron for fifth.
Lap 156, Kevin Harvick, Bubba Wallace, and Chris Buescher make contact but they save the cars and the track stays green.
Lap 159, Denny Hamlin continues to lead the race by one second over Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Busch, and Alex Bowman round out the top five. There are 22 cars on the lead lap.
BJ McLeod has made an unscheduled trip down pit road.
Lap 164, Ryan Blaney has closed the gap on leader Denny Hamlin to just over half a second; Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Busch, and Alex Bowman round out the top five.
Lap 168, Denny Hamlin has a lead of just over half a second on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 171, Ryan Preece is off the pace with reports of alternator issues.
Today is race start number 550 for Denny Hamlin.
Lap 173, Ryan Blaney has closed the gap on leader Denny Hamlin to just a quarter of a second and is challenging for the lead.
Lap 175, Ryan Blaney battle Denny Hamlin for the lead.
Lap 176, new leader; Ryan Blaney takes the lead.
Lap 177, Ryan Blaney has a third of a second lead on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 185, Ryan Blaney has a lead of over half a second on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Larson round out the top five with 21 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 190, there are nearly three seconds between leader Ryan Blaney and fif place driver Kyle Larson.
Lap 194, Ryan Blaney has a lead of over a second (1.26) on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Larson round out the top five; Kyle Busch is in sixth nearly five seconds back.
Lap 194, the gap between leader Ryan Blaney and fifth place driver Kyle Larson is now nearly five seconds.
Lap 200, Ryan Blaney holds a lead of over a second on Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Larson round out the top five with 20 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 204, Ryan Blaney continues to increase his lead and is now over a second and a half in front of denny Hamlin.
BJ McLeod is now 21 laps down and in 37th place.
Lap 207, Ryan Blaney is now over two seconds ahead of Denny Hamlin; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Lap 216, Ryan Blaney continues to extend his lead on Denny Hamlin and the field. Blaney is now two and a half seconds in front of the field; Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Chase Elliott round out the top five. There are 18 cars on the lead lap. Joey Logano is the last car on the lead lap.
With 36 laps remaining in stage two, Ryan Blaney has a lead of over two and a half seconds on Denny Hamlin with 18 cars on the lead lap.
After being on pit road with an alternator issue, Ryan Preece is back on the track five laps down with fresh tires and is looking to earn at least one of his laps back by passing race leader Ryan Blaney.
Thirty to go in stage two, Ryan Blaney is now three seconds in front of Denny Hamlin; Alex Bowman, Martin Truex Jr, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Lapa 219, drivers continue to battle it out through the field. Ryan Blaney has a three second lead on Denny Hamlin and is on team mate Joey Logano’s bumper.
Cody Ware brings out the caution flag spins out with a flat tire and hits the wall. The caution flag saved Joey Logano from going a lap down.
With 100 laps on their tires, drivers come down pit road for fresh tires. Ryan Blaney wins the race off of pit road.
Joey Logano was caught speeding on pit road and will have to restart the race from the back of the field.
Ryan Blaney brings the field down for the green flag restart from the inside lane with just 13 laps remaining in stage two and jumps out in front of Denny Hamlin for the lead.
the top five are Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, Alex Bowman, and Kyle Busch.
Denny Hamlin battle Ryan Blaney for the lead but Blaney hold on to the top spot.
Austin Dillon and Kyle Larson make contact battling for position but the track stays green.
Matt DiBenedetto and Ryan Newman make contact, doing some damage to their cars.
Ryan Blaney and Denny Hamlin continue to battle for the lead.
Lap 251, the caution flag comes out after all the contact.
Ryan Blaney brings the field down for the green flag restart for a two lap shootout to end stage two. Ryan Blaney jumps out in front for the lead with Martin Truex Jr battling Denny Hamlin for second.
Ryan Blaney wins stage two for the stage sweep with Denny Hamlin at his door for second.
The top 10 at the end of stage two:
Ryan Blaney
Denny Hamlin
Martin Truex Jr
Alex Bowman
Chase Elliott
Brad Keselowski
William Byron
Tyler Reddick
Kyle Busch
Kurt Busch
Even though they were on pit road a short time ago, the drivers come down pit road for service including fresh tires. Ryan Blaney wins the race off of pit road followed by Martin Truex Jr.
After staying out on the track, Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag start of stage three and gets out in front of Brad Keselowski for the lead.
Lap 270, the top five are Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, William Byron, Tyler Reddick and Kurt Busch. Ryan Blaney restarted the race in eleventh place.
Lap 275, Denny Hamlin has pulled out to a lead of nearly a second on Brad Keselowski with 23 cars on the lead lap.
Justin Haley spins out bringing out the seventh caution flag on lap 277. Michael McDowell is the “lucky dog”.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 283 and holds off Brad Keselowski for the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, William Byron ,and Kurt Busch. There are 24 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 287, Denny Hamlin has pulled out to a half second lead on Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, William Byron, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
The caution flag comes out on lap 290 when Cody Ware spins out again.
Drivers come down pit road for service and fresh tires. Denny Hamlin wins the race off of pit road with Joey Logano in second.
Austin Dillon is being held on pit road for pitting outside of his pit box.
After staying out on the track, Bubba Wallace brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 297. Fifty laps ago, Wallace was two laps down. Bubba Wallace and Ryan Newman battle it out for the lead with Bubba edging out to take the top spot.
Lap 298, the top five are Bubba Wallace, Ryan Newman, Chris Buescher, Daniel Suarez,and Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
The drivers are three wide across the track.
Lap 300, Bubba Wallace leads the race with 24 cars on the lead lap.
Lap 302, the top five are Bubba Wallace, Ryan Newman, Chris Buescher, Daniel Suarez, and William Byron.
Lap 307, Bubba Wallace holds on to the lead with Ryan Newman a third of a second behind; William Byron, Denny Hamlin, and Chris Buescher round out the top five. Ryan Blaney is mired in traffic back in eleventh place.
William Byron battle Ryan Newman for second place.
Lap 311, Ryan Blaney enters the top 10 after passing Martin Truex Jr.
Lap 313, Bubba Wallace has led 21 laps so far; the most he has ever led as a Cup Series driver. William Byron is looking to take the lead in a battle with Wallace.
Lap 315, William Byron passes Bubba Wallace to become the fifth different leader of the day.
Ryan Blaney is reporting that the temperatures in his car are way up.
Lap 317, the top five are William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Newman, and Kyle Larson.?
Brad Keselowski is reporting some issues with his power steering.
Kyle Busch brings out the caution flag after spinning out. Busch just missed backing into the wall. Busch reports that the right rear feels like a pogo stick.
Drivers come down pit road for service. Denny Hamlin wins the race off of pit road.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 328 and edges out William Byron for the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Alex Bowman, Ryan Newman, and Joey Logano.
The 10th caution flag comes out with 170 laps remaining in the race after an on track issue involving Anthony Alfredo.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart with 165 laps remaining in the race. He edges out William Byron for the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Alex Bowman, Ryan Newman, and Joey Logano.
Lapa 339, Brad Keselowski brings out the caution flag after making contact with Daniel Suarez and spinning out.
Some of the drivers come down pit road for service. While Keselowski was on pit road, the crew replaced the power steering fluid in his car.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 347 from the inside lane. Denny Hamlin jumps out in front for the lead with Alex Bowman in second.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Alex Bowman, William Byron, Joey Logano, and Ryan Blaney.
Ryan Newman gets turned around and brings out the twelfth caution flag of the race.
Aric Almirola brings his car down pit road with lots of front end damage to his car.
Choosing the inside lane, Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart on lap 355 and edges out Alex Bowman for the lead.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Alex Bowman, Joey Logano, William Byron, and Ryan Blaney.
There are 27 cars on the lead lap with all 37 drivers still in the race.
Lap 358, Denny Hamlin has a lead of over half a second on Alex Bowman; Joey Logano, William Byron, and Ryan Blaney round out the top five.
Ryan Blaney passes William Byron for fourth with Denny Hamlin over a second out in front of Joey Logano.
Lap 364 Denny Hamlin has a lead of over a second and a half on Joey Logano; Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five.
Alex Bowman reports a bad vibration in his car. He is trying to work his way to pit road.
Lap 268, Denny Hamlin has a lead of nearly two seconds on Joey Logano; Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, and Martin Truex Jr round out the top five.
Erik Jones brings out the caution flag when he spins out on lap 371.
Alex Bowman had a loose wheel.
Drivers come down pit road for service. They can make it to the end of the race from this point. Denny Hamlin wins the race off of pit road.
In an incident on pit road, Corey LaJoie has part of his front end torn off of the car.
Christopher Bell brings the field down for the green flag restart with 123 laps remaining in the race. Bell beats out Ross Chastain for the lead.
The top five are Christopher Bell, Denny Hamlin, Daniel Suarez, Ryan Blaney, and Joey Logano.
Drivers are three wide across the track.
Lap 380, Christopher Bell has a lead of nearly half a second on Denny Hamlin; Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Daniel Suarez gets run up the track but the track stays green.
With 115 laps to go, the drivers are getting very aggressive on the track.
The caution flag comes out for a big wreck that completely blocked the track. Daniel Suarez, Justin Haley, Alex Bowman, Erik Jones, Cole Custer, Anthony Alfredo, Ryan Preece, Michael McDowell, Matt DiBenedetto, Kyle Busch, Chris Buscher, James Davison, Brad Keselowski, and Kurt Busch were all involved. Daniel Suarez’s car is on fire; he is out of the car and fine.
NASCAR has displayed the red flag at 6:54pm in order to get the track cleaned up.
After a 20 minute red flag delay, NASCAR displays the caution flag and the engines get fired. The drivers are moving around the track once again.
Some of the drivers come down pit road for service and fresh tires.
Ross Chastain was caught speeding on pit road and will have to restart the race from the back of the field.
Of the car that were involved in the big wreck, only five are out of the race: Brad Keselowski, Daniel Suarez, Alex Bowman, Ryan Preece, and Justin Haley.
Denny Hamlin brings the field down for the green flag restart as the lights come on with Ryan Blaney alongside on lap 395. Denny Hamlin jumps out in front to take the lead with Ryan Blaney on his bumper.
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr, Joey Logano, and Kyle Larson.
Kyle Larson makes contact with Martin Truex Jr but Truex saved the car and the track stays green.
Corey LaJoie is also out of the race.
Drivers are getting three wide across the track as they battle for position.
Lap 401, the top five are Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Martin Truex Jr, Joey Logano, and Chase Elliott.
Lap 405, Denny Hamlin has a lead of over half a second on Ryan Blaney.
Erik Jones takes his car to the garage down a cylendar.
With 89 laps remaining in the race, Denny Hamlin holds on to a lead of over half a second on Ryan Blaney; Martin Truex Jr, Joey Logano, and Chase Elliott round out the top five.
Chase Elliott passes Joey Logano on the outside to take fourth place.
Kyle Larson passes Joey Logano on the outside to take fifth place.
Christopher Bell passes Joey Logano.
Eighty to go, Denny Hamlin has a lead of less than half a second on Ryan Blaney.
Lap 421, Ryan Blaney is on leader Denny Hamlin’s bumper and challenging for the lead. So far Hamlin has led 218 laps.
With 75 laps to go, Denny Hamlin leads the race with Ryan Blaney in second; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
With 19 cars on the lead lap, Ryan Blaney is right on leader Denny Hamlin’s bumper.
Lap 433, Ryan Blaney continues to ride leader Denny Hamlin’s bumper in a challenge to take the lead; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Sixty to go, Denny Hamlin continues to lead the race with Ryan Blaney on his bumper; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Fifty to go, Denny Hamlin continues to lead the race with Ryan Blaney riding his bumper; Martin Truex Jr, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson round out e the top five.
The caution flag comes out on lap 451 when Chase Briscoe spins out and hits the wall.
Drivers come down pit road for that one last set of sticker tires. Martin Truex Jr wins the race off of pit road. Ryan Blaney will have to serve a penalty for removing equipment from his pit box when the air hose gets stuck and he takes it with him.
Martin Truex Jr brings the field down for the green flag restart with 42 laps remaining in the race from the inside lane with Denny Hamlin alongside on the outside. Truex gets out in front for the lead but Hamlin comes up and passes Truex on the outside to take the lead./
The top five are Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, and Joey Logano. Ryan Blaney is the last car on the lead lap in 19th place.
With 37 laps to go, Denny Hamlin has a half second lead on Martin Truex Jr; Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Kyle Larson round out the top five.
Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, and Christopher Bell are in a battle for the fourth place spot. Ryan Blaney has moved up to 15th place.
Thirty to go, Denny Hamlin has a lead of under half a second on Martin Truex Jr; Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Christopher Bell round out the top five.
Ryan Newman’s car is smoking after beating and banging with Kyle Busch for tenth place.
Lap 475, Martin Truex Jr has caught up to leader Denny Hamlin and is battling for the lead.
If Hamlin can hold on to the lead and win the race, he will be the eighth different winner this season.
Twenty to go, Denny Hamlin has a narrow lead as Martin Truex Jr continues to battle for the position; Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and William Byron round out the top five.
Fifteen to go, team mates Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr continue to battle for the lead and Martin Truex Jr has finally gotten past Hamlin for the lead with losts of traffic ahead; Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and William Byron round out the top five.
Lap 487, Chase Elliott challenges Denny Hamlin for second place. Martin Truex Jr is nearly a second out in front.
Ten to go, Martin Truex Jr has a one second lead on Denny Hamlin who has Chase Elliott on his bumper; Chase Elliott and William Byron round out the top five.
Lap 494, Chase Elliott takes second from Denny Hamlin.
Five to go and Martin Truex Jr has a two second lead on Chase Elliott.
With a lead of over two seconds, Martin Truex Jr takes the white flag.
Martin Truex Jr becomes the first two time winner this season.
the unofficial results of the Blue Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500:
Martin Truex Jr
Chase Elliott
Denny Hamlin
William Byron
Kyle Larson
Joey Logano
Christopher Bell
Tyler Reddick
Kevin Harvick
Kyle Busch
Ryan Blaney
Matt DiBenedetto
Chris Buescher
Austin Dillon
Ricky Stenhouse Jr
Bubba Wallace
Ross Chastain
Cole Custer
Ryan Newman
Aric Almirola
Kurt Busch
James Davison
Josh Bilicki
Quin Houff
JJ Yeley
Anthony Alfredo
Chase Briscoe
Cody Ware
BJ McLeod
Erik Jones
Michael McDowell
Daniel Suarez
Brad Keselowski
Alex Bowman
Justin Haley
Ryan Preece
Corey LaJoie