RICHMOND, Va. — Austin Dillon found redemption under the lights Saturday night, leading 107 laps — including the final 49 — to win the Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway and punch his ticket into the 16-driver Cup Series Playoff field. It was Dillon’s sixth career Cup win and third victory in the closing weeks of a regular season, but this one carried extra weight: he won this same race a year ago only to be ruled ineligible for the playoffs after a penalty for aggressive driving in the closing laps. Saturday’s finish, 2.471 seconds ahead of Alex Bowman, erased that memory in emphatic fashion.
Bowman’s runner-up run left him holding the final playoff transfer spot heading into the regular-season finale at Daytona, while Ryan Blaney turned in the best Richmond finish of his career in third and Joey Logano rallied from a last-place start to finish fourth, rounding out a strong night for Team Penske. William Byron clinched the Regular Season Championship despite finishing 12th after getting collected in a 10-car incident, while teammate Chase Elliott’s title hopes ended in an 11-car wreck that produced his first DNF of the season. Bubba Wallace led a race-high 123 laps before a pit-road mishap dropped him out of contention.
All-Pro Reels was trackside for the closing chapter of Richmond’s night race, from the wrecked machinery in the tow zone to the confetti in victory lane.
The Cup Series regular season wraps up next week under the lights at Daytona International Speedway before the Playoffs begin.