Michael McDowell holds off Chase Elliott to win on Indy road course

Michael McDowell took the lead from pole-sitter Daniel Suárez on lap 6 of the Verizon 200 and, for the most part, never looked back. Starting from fourth on the grid, he was second by the end of the first lap and then made the pass on Suárez coming out of the final corner on lap 6.

With only one caution thrown in the 85-lap race – on lap 2 – McDowell capitalized on the track position and some crafty driving to get the win and secure his second NASCAR Cup Series playoff appearance.

“These guys gave me everything today,” McDowell said. “I don’t know if it was dominant, but it felt dominant to me.”

Verizon 200 results

1. Michael McDowell (34), Front Row Motorsports Ford

2. Chase Elliott (9), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

3. Daniel Suárez (99), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

4. Tyler Reddick (45), 23XI Racing Toyota

5. Alex Bowman (48), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

6. Chase Briscoe (14), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

7. Martin Truex Jr. (19), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

8. Kyle Larson (5), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

9. Christopher Bell (20), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

10. Shane van Gisbergen (91), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

11. Chris Buescher (17), RFK Racing Ford

12. Ty Gibbs (54), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

13. Ryan Blaney (12), Team Penske Ford

14. William Byron (24), Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

15. Austin Cindric (2), Team Penske Ford

16. Austin Dillon (3), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

17. Ross Chastain (1), Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

18. Bubba Wallace (23), 23XI Racing Toyota

19. Denny Hamlin (11), Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

20. Brad Keselowski (6), RFK Racing Ford

21. Harrison Burton (21), Wood Brothers Racing Ford

22. Brodie Kostecki (33), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

23. Kevin Harvick (4), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

24. Mike Rockenfeller (42), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet

25. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (47), JTG Daugherty Racing Chevrolet

26. A.J. Allmendinger (16), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

27. Ty Dillon (77), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

28. Jenson Button (15), Rick Ware Racing Ford

29. Corey LaJoie (7), Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

30. Andy Lally (51), Rick Ware Racing Ford

31. Ryan Preece (41), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

32. Josh Bilicki (78), Live Fast Motorsports Ford

33. Kamui Kobayashi (67), 23XI Racing Toyota

34. Joey Logano (22), Team Penske Ford

35. Erik Jones (43), Legacy Motor Club Chevrolet

36. Kyle Busch (8), Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

37. Todd Gilliland (38), Front Row Motorsports Ford

38. Justin Haley (31), Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

39. Aric Almirola (10), Stewart-Haas Racing Ford

Denny Hamlin goes long for Stage 2 win

Denny Hamlin rode a bold pit strategy – that is not pitting at all – to win Stage 2 ahead of Michael McDowell and Daniel Suárez. McDowell got ahead of Suárez as they caught Hamlin and a similarly off-strategy Brad Keselowski in the final sequence of corners.

The eventual race lead appeared to be Suárez’s to lose thanks to a bold move earlier in the stage. Suárez gained about five car lengths on McDowell with an aggressive pit entry as both stopped on lap 17. That helped get him off pit road ahead of McDowell and eventually in the race lead after the first round of…