Brad Keselowski wins the 2014 MyAFibStory.com 400 at Chicagoland Speedway

JOLIET, Ill. -- Opening the Chase for the Sprint Cup just as he ended the regular season, Brad Keselowski won Sunday’s race at Chicagoland Speedway. Under NASCAR’s new playoff format, Keselowski -- who won a week ago at Richmond International Speedway -- entered the Chase as the No. 1 seed and is assured of advancing to the second round.

Following a late restart, Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick lined up first and second. They then proceeded to put forth an intense side-by-side with each driver taking the other’s racing line multiple times. But as Larson and Harvick fought, Keselowski closed the distance.

Using a surge of momentum with 16 laps to go, Keselowski executed a bold three-wide pass driving through the middle -- Harvick to his inside and Larson to the outside -- to take the point. It was a lead Keselowski never relinquished.

Jeff Gordon finished second, followed by Larson, Joey Logano and Harvick completing the top five.

By winning Sunday, the 2012 Sprint Cup champion is assured of advancing to the second round no matter how he performs the next two weeks. In addition to Keselowski, Chase-eligible drivers finished in eight of the top 10 positions. The only outliers were Larson (third) and Jamie McMurray (ninth).

However, as good a day as it was for Keselowski, Gordon and other Chase drivers, it was equally as bad for others.

Aric Almirola was running in the top five when an engine failure sent him to the garage. A tire failure cost Ryan Newman a potential top 10, though he did rally from three laps down to finish 15th. And Roush Fenway Racing teammates Carl Edwards and Greg Biffle both lacked speed throughout the afternoon, laboring to 20th and 23rd, respectively.

Other championship contenders also experienced numerous problems on pit road. Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth each spun, while Kyle Busch overshot his pit stall.

Keselowski maintains the top position in the standings, expanding his lead from three points to seven over Gordon, who stays second overall.

Joey Logano, Keselowski’s teammate, moves to third with Harvick fourth. Rounding out the top 10 is Dale Earnhardt Jr., Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch and Matt Kenseth.

With two races remaining, the four drivers facing elimination are Newman (one point outside the cut line), AJ Allmendinger (-5), Biffle (-9) and Almirola (-23).

The next NASCAR Chase race is Sept. 21 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.