NASCAR Denny Hamlin

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Denny Hamlin’s Day has a Much Happier Ending than Beginning

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo - Daniel Shirey/Getty Images
Photo – Daniel Shirey/Getty Images

Considering the way Sunday started for Denny Hamlin, a third-place finish in the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 might have defied the omens from early in the day.

Hamlin was on the way to an early-morning appearance when the driver introduction stage, being hauled by a tractor, collided with the golf cart in which Hamlin was riding. The golf car was totaled, but Hamlin saw the accident coming and leaped out of the vehicle before the impact.

Before the race, Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota fell off its jack, forcing the team to do extra work to get it through inspection. Continue reading →

Jimmie Johnson’s Win at Martinsville Brings Talk of Seventh Title to Forefront

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News

Mr. Martinsville is back – and with him, a realistic shot at a record-tying NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.

Winless at the 0.526-mile short track since the spring race of 2013, Jimmie Johnson ended his “drought” on Sunday with a victory in the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 and earned a berth in the Championship 4 race, set for Nov. 20 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

In winning for the ninth time at Martinsville, the fourth time this season and the 79th time in his career, Johnson didn’t take the lead until he passed Denny Hamlin for the top spot on lap 409 of 500. Continue reading →

Hamlin Hopes to Lock Up Championship 4 Berth

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News
Photo - Getty Images
Photo – Getty Images

Denny Hamlin’s championship aspirations came 0.006 seconds away from evaporating at Talladega last Sunday. Fortunately for the No. 11 Toyota driver, he beat Kurt Busch to the finish line by 0.006 seconds (approximately two feet) for a third-place result that earned him the final spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Round of 8 over Austin Dillon.

Now holding the same amount of points as the remaining eight Chase-eligible drivers, Hamlin is back at square one heading into Sunday’s Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at his hometown track – and also one of his best tracks – Martinsville Speedway at 1 pm ET on NBCSN. Continue reading →

Logano Advances with Win in Wild Talladega Race; Chase Field Cut to Eight

NASCAR NASCAR Wire Service Sprint Cup Series Track News

If Joey Logano’s victory in Sunday’s Hellman’s 500 at Talladega Superspeedway was decisive—in relative terms—the race between Denny Hamlin and Austin Dillon for the final pot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup’s Round of 8 was anything but.

In an overtime race that went four laps past its scheduled distance, Logano surged ahead after a restart on lap 191 at the 2.66-mile track and beat runner-up Brian Scott to the finish line by 0.124 seconds.

Hamlin’s margin over Dillon for the eighth spot in the Round of 8 was much smaller. At the end of 510.72 miles, Hamlin outraced Kurt Busch for third place by 0.006 seconds—roughly two feet—to score the exact number of points he needed to eliminate Dillon from the Chase on a tiebreaker. Continue reading →