NASCAR came and went in Atlanta this weekend for the Ambetter Health 400. Truly, the race was thrilling and entertaining but muddied by controversy. #20 Christopher Bell emerged victorious but not before a caution flag ended the race on the last lap. It robbed fans of yet another three-wide finish. This time with Bell, the #77 of Carson Hocevar, and #5 Kyle Larson. But we’ll get into the controversy on SpeedGeeks this week. This piece is strictly highlighting six things. Three drivers who rose to the moment, and those who fell on the power rankings. Here’s this week’s “Three Up, Three Down” after the Ambetter Health 400.
Three Up
#21 Josh Berry
Berry in his second race with the Wood Brothers had a great day. The finish wasn’t representative of how great of a day the #21 had. Winning the first stage and leading 56 laps. P25 was not the finish the car deserved, but this should be a sign of great things to come for Berry in the #21. We’ll see how he holds up at COTA this weekend, and then get into the more traditional tracks of Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Homestead down the stretch. But, the Wood Brothers Mustang might not have to wait so long for win #101 if things keep up.
#71 Michael McDowell
After an early issue with power steering, it seemed that Michael McDowell’s day was over. He went back to the garage, made repairs, and came back out six laps down. In any other race, that probably puts you so far behind you’re just making laps and doing what you can. But McDowell battled back, collecting the lucky dog position six times and getting back on the lead lap. He would up with a P13 finish after what seemed to be an early end. A great showing for McDowell and Spire Motorsports as a whole. McDowell has some road course prowess and will be able to showcase that in Austin next week.
#77 Carson Hocevar
For those of you who bet on Carson Hocevar taking a major step forward in his second season in the NASCAR Cup Series, it’s certainly paying dividends so far. He was the talk of the town this weekend in Atlanta. Driving very aggressively, making moves, and collecting a runner-up finish in the second race of the year. He also collected P9 and P7 respectively in the first two stages. He’s ruffled some feathers after this event. Big-time veterans like the aforementioned Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch complained on the radio of his aggressive “don’t give a damn” attitude, and pictured Ross Chastain having a conversation with him post-race.
There’s a good chance he’ll have to learn the hard way, as Chastain did. But so far so good for the 22-year-old. The #77 has taken a major step forward two races in and will have some buzz headed into next weekend.
Three Down
#6 Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowski is known as one of the better plate racers in the NASCAR Cup Series today. But the 2025 season opened with two of those races, and Keselowski hasn’t shined. One wreck, a total of 21 points. It just wasn’t all that promising of a start for the driver-owner of RFK Racing. It’s a long season and Brad’s good enough to compete all season long, but we all imagined Keselowski having a better start to the year than this. Getting caught up in Chase Elliott and Ricky Stenhouse’s mess wasn’t all his fault. But it’s just disheartening to see.
#19 Chase Briscoe (Mostly the #19 team)
The post-Daytona penalty for the modified spoiler on the #19 team has put them in a giant hole. After kicking off the season with a P4 finish, the penalty knocked them to a -67 deficit on season points. In Atlanta, Briscoe qualified P25 and ended up with a P21 finish, netting 16 points all in all. Now at -51 on the year. He’s on the down not because he couldn’t make it all up in one race. That’s unfair. But I didn’t get to touch on the penalty, and the race from him wasn’t all that special to begin with. The first breath of the post-Truex era for this #19 team has been nothing short of typical, to say the least.
#99 Daniel Suarez
The wreck wasn’t necessarily Suarez’s fault. But in the big picture, this could mean serious consequences for him. Atlanta is the only track where Suarez has finished in the top 5 more than once in the next-gen era. It’s hard to imagine another spot not named Daytona or Talladega where he’s been as promising at the NASCAR Cup Series level in the last few years. It could be premature to say this, but this could be the end of Suarez’s hopes of a playoff berth. It’s a long season, but statistically, this is gutting for the #99 team.
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