COREY LAJOIE

Bubba Wallace won his second career NASCAR Cup Series race and denied the playoff field of an automatic spot in the next round for the second straight week when he held off championship contenders Denny Hamlin and Christopher Bell to win at Kansas Speedway.

Brad Keselowski likes his chances at Daytona International Speedway.

Sure, it’s been a wild NASCAR Cup season, with seemingly everyone in the field capable of taking the checkered flag.

The wild capper to another eventful Atlanta race denied LaJoie the first victory of his career, which would've been a huge upset for the small-budget Spire Motorsports team. Chase Elliott joined his father as the only Georgia-born drivers to win at Atlanta. “To win at your home track is a really big deal for any race car driver,” Elliott said. LaJoie led the field from the inside lane, but he couldn't hold off Elliott, who surged to the front before taking the white flag. LaJoie got a good run on the leader going into the first turn, but Elliott slid up the banking to cut him off.

Chase Elliott got by Corey LaJoie with just under two laps to go and crossed the finish line under yellow after a block sent LaJoie crashing into the wall.

With the home crowd cheering his every move, Chase Elliott wanted this win so badly. No way Elliott was letting him by. The Georgia-born driver powered past the upset-minded LaJoie with just under two laps to go and crossed the finish line under yellow after a big block sent LaJoie smashing into the wall Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Chase Elliott salvaged a crummy day for Hendrick Motorsports and interrupted a potential Toyota rout by winning the rain-drenched race at Nashville Superspeedway on Sunday night.

Here's a look at the top stories making headlines on the "CBS Evening News," anchored by Jamie Yuccas.

Ryan Blaney won for the second consecutive week when the race Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway ended under caution in overtime with a typical fiery finish.

NASCAR Indianapolis Auto Racing Joey Logano (22) waves to fans after crashing during a NASCAR Series auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Sunday, Aug. 15, 2021, in Indianapolis. The vaccine is suddenly a topic in NASCAR, though many drivers don’t want to discuss it. Most drivers said Sunday they believed a negative test should be good enough for NASCAR to greenlight a competitor. Austin Dillon noted there are many ways to isolate drivers from teams in racing, including the use of a helmet. Kyle Larson, a five-time Cup race winner this season and the points leader, said he hasn’t changed anything yet.

Some of NASCAR's top drivers are taking extra health precautions for the playoff chase.

One week after Denny Hamlin and Chase Briscoe tangled on the track in NASCAR's Cup Series, they'll be back in action Sunday at Michigan.

Corey LaJoie will miss Sunday's race at Michigan because of NASCAR's COVID-19 protocols. LaJoie posted "Protocols" on Twitter in what appeared to be clarification that he has not tested positive for COVID-19 and was missing the race because of NASCAR's pandemic rules. Berry, meanwhile, was announced as a full-time Xfinity Series driver next season for JR Motorsports. He was scheduled to replace Michael Annett at Michigan in Saturday's Xfinity race. NASCAR this week tightened its protocols on the advice of its consulting physicians as cases of COVID-19 have spiked across the country.

Bubba Wallace has struggled to find success driving for Michael Jordan.

With darkness closing in, Aric Almirola sprung to life late Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and pulled off a surprise for Stewart-Haas Racing’s first victory of the year.

Christopher Bell celebrates at the finish line after winning the NASCAR Cup Series road course auto race at Daytona International Speedway, Sunday, Feb. 21, 2021, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)HOMESTEAD, Fla. – NASCAR’s postseason landscape has been altered after just two Cup Series races. “The number of unique winners is really going to change how many cars get in on points, right? Although Bell drives for powerhouse Joe Gibbs Racing, he was a rookie for that top team and in his second full season in the Cup series. The Cup Series opened on a superspeedway, then raced on a road course, and now heads to an intermediate track. Whether that’s different markets, different racetracks, it has to be different from year to year.

Austin Dillon (3) takes the checkered flag to win the second NASCAR Daytona 500 duel qualifying auto race Friday, Feb. 12, 2021, at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The 40 drivers competing in the 2021 Daytona 500, in order of starting position:___No. This is his 20th Daytona 500; he was hired days after Earnhardt's death. Son of two-time Daytona 500 champion and Hall of Fame driver Bill Elliott. Finished a career-best seventh in the 2017 Daytona 500, but has been 27th, 28th and 19th since. McLeodBORN: Nov. 17, 1983AdHOMETOWN: Wauchula, FloridaCREW CHIEF: Frank KerrSPONSOR: NASCAR HeatsTWITTER: @bjmcleod78NOTEWORTHY: Owner-driver racing in his third Daytona 500.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Daniel Suarez, who landed a ride two weeks before the season-opening Daytona 500, will not return to Gaunt Brothers Racing next season and is seeking a new team for the third time in three years. Gaunt Brothers said Tuesday it was a mutual decision for the Mexican driver to leave the team. “I’m extremely thankful to my entire Toyota family for everything they have done for me, especially this year," Suarez said. “I will always be grateful to them for having my back.”Suarez has struggled with Gaunt Brothers, which is in its first full season of Cup competition. His long relationship with Toyota helped Suarez get the job with Gaunt Brothers, a team that began in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series in 2010 and the Canada-based NASCAR Pinty’s Series.

NASCAR drivers don't plan to boycott Saturday night's, Aug. 29 race at Daytona International Speedway to raise awareness of social and racial injustices. NASCAR drivers do not plan to skip Saturday night's race at Daytona International Speedway to raise awareness of social and racial injustices. I can assure all of you that myself and many of my competitors are continuing to work hard with @NASCAR to continue the efforts and the fight for racial equality. "I certainly think we need to continue our discussions about social and racial injustice, and we continue to educate ourselves. Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson on Friday agreed with Wallace that athletes have a right to share our opinion on social matters.

It feels like forever, so welcome back, guys, said Keselowski, who is in a contract year at Team Penske. It feels so weird to be racing without fans, but were glad youre here. The reigning Cup champion is a 12-time winner in New Hampshire, including three in the top series. Keselowski took the second stage, passing Hamlin on the final lap of a two-lap sprint following a series of cautions late in the stage. But Jeremy Bullins has focused on helping Keselowski win races and earn a contract extension.

(AP Photo/Butch Dill)NASCAR's return to racing shifts to Talladega Superspeedway, with new rules in place after Ryan Newman's frightful crash in the season-opening Daytona 500. The Alabama track will admit up to 5,000 fans Sunday with at least one NASCAR team facing a coronavirus scare while NASCAR will be on the lookout for the newly banned Confederate flag. The 5,000 fans in the grandstands will arrive just 48 hours after Stewart-Haas Racing confirmed two unidentified employees tested posted for COVID-19. Those who test positive may not be among the 16 permitted to go to the track under virus rules. He continued to recover during the coronavirus shutdown and returned to racing when NASCAR got back to the track in May.

NASCAR's return to racing shifts to Talladega Superspeedway, with new rules in place after Ryan Newman's frightful crash in the season-opening Daytona 500. The Alabama track will admit up to 5,000 fans Sunday with at least one NASCAR team facing a coronavirus scare while NASCAR will be on the lookout for the newly banned Confederate flag. The 5,000 fans in the grandstands will arrive just 48 hours after Stewart-Haas Racing confirmed two unidentified employees tested posted for COVID-19. Those who test positive can not be among the 16 permitted to go to the track under virus rules. NASCAR said this week as many as 30,000 people can attend the All-Star race in Tennessee, and Texas Motor Speedway plans to allow fans at its event.

FILE - In this May 11, 2012, file photo, drivers take the green flag for the start of the NASCAR Nationwide Series auto race at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, S.C. NASCAR will re-fire the engines moments after mask-clad drivers climb into their cars at Darlington Raceway. (Tyler Barrick/Pool Photo via AP, File)DARLINGTON, S.C. NASCAR will not be as you remember it when racing returns at old egg-shaped Darlington Raceway. He tested at Darlington shortly before the season was suspended and determined then he was fit to race again. Busch and Hill are adding Xfinity Series races at Darlington and Charlotte, and a Truck Series race at Charlotte to their calendar. His only victory so far this season was the Truck Series race at home track Las Vegas.