Winners and losers from a record-breaking NASCAR Cup race at Atlanta

Let’s start off this week’s edition of ‘Winners and Losers’ by just applauding the minds behind the Atlanta reconfiguration. The new version of this historic track has quickly asserted itself as one of the best on the schedule, and consistently puts on the most exciting races. On Sunday, 14 different drivers took a turn out front with a record 57 lead changes.

And despite all of the chaos and carnage, it was the exact same result as one week ago as Michael Jordan and Tyler Redddick celebrated the win, further extending their advantage in the championship standings.

As is the case with many of these chaotic races, we couldn’t possibly include every winner and loser, but here’s a look at some of the biggest and most interesting winners/losers from a sensational race around EchoPark Speedway: 

WINNER: Tyler Reddick has no fender, and that was no problem

Watch: Reddick on second win: ‘Sometimes things are just meant to be’

Reddick’s Atlanta win might actually be more impressive than his dramatic Daytona 500 triumph. The #45 car was wrecked, spinning down the frontstretch with its right-front fender completely missing within 50 laps of the finish. And yet, the team bolted fresh tires to the wounded car and Reddick stormed back through the field. He went from being the pusher on an overtime restart to driving off with the win, going back-to-back in a feat not seen in the NASCAR Cup Series since 2009. 

LOSER: Hocevar’s great run gets overshadowed…again

Carson Hocevar had another fantastic run on Sunday, and yet another shot at securing his first win in the Cup Series. Ultimately, he finished fourth, but just like last year’s race at Atlanta, he didn’t reach the checkered flag without ruffling a few feathers. He spun Logano in an honest mistake in the middle of the race, but once he could sniff the race lead in overtime, Hocevar let his aggression get the best of him. He wedged his way between Bell and Wallace seconds into the first overtime restart, and Bell went crashing into the outside wall. And on the final lap, he drove Wallace directly in the wall before driving off with a top-five finish. Based on his recent social posts, he doesn’t really care about the run-ins, and that will make for some great television, but it won’t make his season any easier on the track.

WINNER: SVG goes off-roading and scores his best oval finish yet

Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet

Photo by: Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Shane van Gisbergen’s best result on an oval in the NASCAR Cup Series was tenth before Atlanta, but now it’s sixth. The 3x Supercars champion even got as high as fourth on the final lap, but what made his run more impressive was what he had to battle back from. SVG was moments away from a potential third-place finish in Stage 2 when Kyle Larson came down, sending him through the infield grass (and partially airborne). As the team worked to get the car right after that, SVG spun on his own, taking a second trip through the infield. But despite all that, he still surged forward at the end with fresh tires, and was integral in getting teammate Ross Chastain into a podium spot with a mighty shove at the white flag. Oh, and we’re heading to a road course next week…

LOSER: Bubba Wallace and what could have been

Watch: Bubba Wallace left thinking ‘what could’ve been’ after EchoPark

It felt like deja vu as Reddick celebrated on the frontstretch while Michael Jordan consoled Wallace in the pit lane, similar to the scene we saw at Daytona one week ago. And while a tough loss at the 500 was due to circumstances beyond Wallace’s immediate control, he was surely kicking himself after Atlanta. The #23 was in control with teammate Reddick pushing, but when they got clear of the outside line, Wallace went up in front of the ever-aggressive Hocevar, and he nearly went all the way to the wall, giving Hocevar and pusher Chastain just enough room to shuffle him out of line. While he finished a disappointing eighth, the good news is that Wallace is second in the championship standings. But as Reddick celebrates back-to-back wins, Wallace knows just how close he was to standing in his place in Victory Lane.

Daniel Suarez, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Jeff Curry / Getty Images

After a top five run in the Bowman Gray exhibition race, Suarez has hit the ground running with Spire Motorsports. He avoided the last-lap wreck at Daytona to bring home the team’s best finish, and then pushed Hocevar to a double top-five for the team at Atlanta. Suarez now sits inside the top ten in points, and seems to be gelling nicely with his new team.

LOSER: Kyle Larson’s race-ending error

Kyle Larson crash damage, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Jeffrey Vest / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Larson took full responsibility for this, admitting he ‘screwed up’ on the final lap of Stage 2. Larson was in the top line through Turn 4 with the green-and-white checkered flag in sight, but he chose to cut all the way down to the bottom. He did this while unaware of SVG, who had just charged by multiple cars and was now to Larson’s inside. Contact was made, and Larson violently slammed the outside wall, costing him a lot of points and ending a promising day. Larson’s race ended over 100 laps shy of the finish, but he still led more laps than anyone besides the race winner.

WINNER: Zane Smith quietly remains top five in the standings

Zane Smith, Front Row Motorsports Ford

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

No one is really talking about the FRM driver, but they should be. He had a shot to win the Daytona 500 after winning a stage in the season-opener, ultimately finishing sixth and avoiding the frontstretch melee. At Atlanta, he finished an impressive seventh with another clean run that now has him fifth in the championship standings. It’s early days, but still a great start for the No. 38 team. Last year, he led just 22 laps and scored five top tens, but after just two races in 2026, he’s at ten laps led and two top tens. Smith is well on his way to having his best season yet in the Cup Series if he can keep it up. Also, he’s the only driver beyond Reddick and Wallace with back-to-back top tens to start the year!

LOSER: All the drivers already falling behind in the points

Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota; Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Sean Gardner / Getty Images

Speaking of the points, there’s some very notable drivers facing fairly deep holes already in the 2026 season. Bell wrecked from the front row in overtime, and that combined with another late-race crash at the 500 means he is 31st in points right now. And even with just 25 points scored through the first two races, there’s several other big name drivers in worse spots. Alex Bowman sits 32nd in the No. 48 Hendrick Chevy, Bell’s JGR teammate Ty Gibbs is 33rd, followed by Austin Dillon in 34th, Todd Gilliland 35th, and rising star Connor Zilisch is 36th — last among full-time drivers after two wrecks to start his rookie campaign. 

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