LONG POND, PENNSYLVANIA – JUNE 28: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Pocono 350 at Pocono Raceway on June 28, 2020 in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Denny Hamlin wins at Pocono Raceway in the NASCAR Cup Series Pocono 350 on Sunday afternoon in the second race of a doubleheader weekend for the series.
Denny Hamlin turned the tables on Kevin Harvick on Sunday at Pocono Raceway.
Staying out on old tires and building a lead while Harvick battled traffic late in the Pocono 350, Hamlin won the second race of the historic NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader by 3.068 seconds over Harvick, reversing the finishing order of the two drivers from a day earlier.
LONG POND, PENNSYLVANIA – JUNE 27: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Busch Head for the Mountains Ford, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Pocono Organics 325 in partnership with Rodale Institute at Pocono Raceway on June 27, 2020, in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
Harvick holds off Hamlin to win the NASCAR Cup Series Pocono Organics 325 at Pocono Raceway on Saturday afternoon.
Benefiting from a two-tire pit stop with 36 laps left, Kevin Harvick held off charging Denny Hamlin over the final green-flag run to win for the first time at Pocono Raceway.
TALLADEGA, ALABAMA – JUNE 21: The NASCAR Toyota Track Drying Team works to dry the track prior to the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500at Talladega Superspeedway on June 21, 2020, in Talladega, Alabama. Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
Inclement weather forces postponement of the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway on June 21, 2020
Lightning strikes and persistent rain forced the postponement of Sunday’s GEICO 500. The NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway will race Monday afternoon.
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – JUNE 14: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Toyota, leads a pack of cars during the NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14, 2020 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
NASCAR Cup Series Expectations Check: One-third of the way into the 2020 season is time to do a check on the drivers and whether they’re meeting expectations to this point of a unique year.
As crazy as the 2020 season has been, normalcy is gradually returning to NASCAR. Eight races have been run since the ten-week-long hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, bringing the season to its one-third completion mark. Drivers needed an adjustment period to the post-pandemic era of the sport; no practice, no qualifying, no fans, two races in one weekend, the list goes on and on. As the races continue to roll on by, these adjustments have allowed some drivers to surprise, and caused others to disappoint. With the season at a bit of a junction heading into Talladega, here’s a quick look at which drivers are exceeding expectations, and which drivers are flopping.
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – JUNE 14: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Toyota, cross the finish line to win the NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14, 2020, in Homestead, Florida. Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Denny Hamlin finds third victory in NASCAR’s Cup Series this year in the Dixie Vodka 400at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday night.
Homestead-Miami Speedway played host for the Dixie Vodka 400 on Sunday afternoon. For the first time, Cup drivers are racing at Homestead in summer instead of the championship event in fall. Near the mid-season, some drivers are struggling to find victory lane, while others are riding on momentum. With no practice or qualifying, teams are showing up on race day to figure out what they have in their cars. This challenge is adding new excitement to NASCAR racing.
