The 2018 Winston Cup Series: Harvick's Atlanta dominance

Kevin Harvick in action during the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500. Harvick led 188 of 325 laps en route to his second Atlanta win.

     After a lengthy rain delay, and impending rain in the forecast, NASCAR was somehow able to fit in a full race at Atlanta Sunday afternoon. Kevin Harvick, after smoking the Xfinity cars on Saturday, put on another clinic in the Cup series. In a clean race which only saw five cautions, and no crashes, Harvick led 188 of 325 laps, many times stretching his lead to several seconds. After smoking the field, Harvick celebrated by holding three fingers out the window, just as he did after his first win at Atlanta in 2001... It's hard to believe, after so many strong runs at the track, it was Harvick's first Atlanta win in 17 years... For anyone who was worried about the Fords in 2018, they finished in five of the first eight positions... Coming home 2nd was Brad Keselowski, followed by Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin, and Martin Truex Jr.

Harvick celebrated Sunday's Atlanta win the same way he did in 2001 (left), with a salute to Dale Earnhardt Sr.

     Aside from Sunday's rain delay, which pushed the green flag to around 4pm, it was a great race weekend at Atlanta... Friday qualifying showed plenty of action: Ryan Newman bested Harvick's pole time by thousandths of a second, only to have his time beat by Kyle Busch... If not for that, Newman would have broken the record he and Buddy Baker share, of 7 Atlanta poles... Then on Saturday, after Harvick's Xfinity win, Brent Moffitt had a surprise win in the Truck race... Kyle Busch dominated, only to lose a wheel after an error on his last pit stop... With all the good action, it's a shame NASCAR doesn't come to Atlanta twice a year anymore...

Front row starters Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman prepare to take the green flag in the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500.

     Up next, it's #NASCARGoesWest... the Cup series now heads to Las Vegas, Phoenix (ISM Raceway), and California (Auto Club) for a west coast swing... After a dominant performance at Atlanta, watch for Harvick to be strong at both Las Vegas and Phoenix. Also watch for Truex Jr.; as Vegas is his track of choice, the 1.5-mile cookie cutter...