It looked like Aric Almirola was going to possibly snag his third-career NASCAR Cup Series win, but on the final green-flag pit stop of the day, Almirola’s Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin only took two tires, which gave them a huge track position advantage on Almirola.
Almirola couldn’t do anything to rebound from the more than 13-second advantage. Harvick had to hold off Denny Hamlin, who closed in over the final few laps of the race. The Pocono Organics 325 marks Harvick’s third win of the 2020 season.
This is Harvick’s first-ever win at Pocono Raceway.
Hamlin was second, Almirola, who won Stage 2, was third.
Rookie Christopher Bell opened eyes with a solid fourth-place finish and Kyle Busch ended up fifth. Busch, the 2019 Cup Series champion, is still searching for his first win of the 2020 season.
Martin Truex Jr., Clint Bowyer, Michael McDowell, Brad Keselowski and Chris Buescher rounded out the top-10 on Saturday.
Joey Logano, who had a strong day and won Stage 1, cut a tire late and finished a disappointing 36th.
The NASCAR Cup Series returns as part of a triple header portion of NASCAR races on Sunday at Pocono Raceway.
Post-Race Stat Pack:
