There has been so much change in Denny Hamlin’s life since the last time he went to Victory Lane in the NASCAR Cup Series, but coming back to Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver was able to turn out the same result.
Hamlin was able to hold off NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver, Chase Elliott, during what ended up being the longest green-flag run on a set of Goodyear tires all afternoon, even as his No. 11 Yahoo! Toyota Camry XSE began to fade dramatically in the final laps.
To even be in contention in the first place was a minor miracle for Hamlin, after the Chesterfield, Virginia-native, along with his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Ty Gibbs, were busted for speedway at Lap 83 (just after the end of Stage 1).
It took a total of 102 laps (just under half of the event) for Hamlin to get back to the race-lead after getting the speeding penalty, jumping back into the lead for the first time post-penalty at Lap 185.
While Hamlin had challenges in the long run (first William Byron, and then his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott in the final run of the race), it appeared that the overall pace of the No. 11, as expected, was the class of the field.
“Being part of Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing, that helps the situation. Over the last few races here, had a dominant car. Makes me look good when I can drive cars like this,” said Hamlin. “I got to thank the whole team. They’re the ones that made all this happen.”
It’s the 61st NASCAR Cup Series victory for Hamlin, which breaks his tie with Kevin Harvick for 10th on the all-time wins list.
RACE RESULTS: NASCAR Cup Series Pennzoil 400 Race Results (Las Vegas)
Chase Elliott spent most of the afternoon hovering anywhere from fifth to seventh, but when the final stage began, his No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet came to life and battled up into the runner-up position. Understandably, Elliott had mixed feelings about the runner-up finish.
“It was definitely better there towards the end than it had started the run. I thought there might be an opportunity. I knew that he was starting to get tight there at the end of runs,” Elliott said. “Yeah, man, as bummed as I am to come up that close to a win, I have to kind of bring myself back to a reality check, how much better we ran today than we’ve been running.”
William Byron finished third after leading some laps in the final stage, while polesitter Christopher Bell managed to collect a fourth-place result. Rounding out the top-five was Ty Gibbs, who, like Hamlin, accrued a speeding penalty at Lap 83.
Chris Buescher picked up a season-best result of sixth-place and was the highest finishing driver out of the Ford Racing camp for RFK Racing. Kyle Larson was seventh, with Chase Briscoe, Bubba Wallace, and Brad Keselowski rounding out the top-10.
For Briscoe, who has started the season in disasterous fashion with three finishes of 36th or worse in the first four races, an early speeding penalty made it look like the No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry XSE was doomed for another poor result. But, through perseverance, the Mitchell, Indiana-native collected the free pass and quickly sliced his way through the pack to get a top-10.
It wasn’t the typical strong afternoon for Team Penske at Las Vegas Motor Speedway either, despite some bright spots in the middle of the event. The highest finisher of the three drivers was Joey Logano in 15th. Ryan Blaney was 16th with Austin Cindric in 19th. Defending Las Vegas Spring Race winner Josh Berry finished 31st, three laps down.
Leaving Las Vegas, Tyler Reddick continues to hold a monumental lead in the NASCAR Cup Series point standings over Bubba Wallace (61 points). Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, and Chase Elliott round out the top-five.
The series will head to Darlington Raceway next weekend for the Goodyear 400, taking place Sunday, March 22 at 3:00 PM ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
