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David Ragan avoids crashes to pull off Talladega upset

TALLADEGA, Ala., May 5 (UPI) -- David Ragan sidestepped two crashes Sunday, grabbing the lead on the final lap en route to an upset victory in the Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Ragan used a push from Front Row Motorsports teammate David Gilliland to make his way through the field on the last lap, overtaking pole sitter Carl Edwards down the stretch.

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He finished 0.2 seconds ahead of Gilliland in the two-lap overtime finish, garnering just his second career Sprint Cup Series victory in a race that was marked by two major crashes and 3 1/2 hours of rain delays.

Ragan's only other win came in 2011 at Daytona International Speedway when he drove for Roush Fenway Racing.

The first pile-up came on Lap 42 and involved 16 cars, with the second coming four laps from the scheduled finish. The latter crash took out Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch, Danica Patrick and Clint Bowyer, among others.

Edwards finished third, with Michael Waltrip and Jimmie Johnson completing the Top 5.

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