NASCAR Cup Series

Hamlin Edges Out Truex Jr. To Win In Kansas

2 Mins read
Denny Hamlin scored his second win of the season (Photo Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Denny Hamlin scored his second win of the season (Photo Credit: Geoff Burke/Getty Images for NASCAR)

Denny Hamlin took his first victory at Kansas Speedway after beating the dominant Martin Truex Jr. to the chequered flag, with Jimmie Johnson a distant third.

The sun shone favourably upon Hamlin, who broke to the front as soon as the dark looming clouds dispersed during the final cycle of green-flag pit-stops, snatching the lead from Truex Jr who had led almost all the way until that point. In the last few laps Truex Jr raced back up to the rear of the #11 but after a few lunges could not find a way past the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, and had to settle for second.

“I know Martin was driving his heart out,” Hamlin said. “I know it’s disappointing not to win when you have a dominant car.”

Truex Jr. was left rueing the final stint of the race, which cost him a potential first Sprint Cup victory since 2007.

“I was a little bit faster than Denny at the end, but he was running against the wall right where I needed to be, and I was just trying to gain a little bit of ground,” he said. “It was desperation – last-ditch effort – just trying something. There was no chance to make it work.”

The second place finish did move him up to second in the championship though, behind fifth placed finisher Greg Biffle, who in turn finished behind Roush team-mate Matt Kenseth.

Polesitter A.J. Allmendinger had a nightmare race, his car suffering engine problems that slowed him down and dropped him several laps back. Jeff Gordon also suffered mechanical woes, his engine dying near the end of the race. Yet more engine problems blighted Toyota as well, with the Camry’s of Mark Martin, Clint Bowyer and Bobby Labonte all succumbing to failure and forcing them to park in the garage.

Results - 267 laps:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
 1.  Denny Hamlin        Gibbs Toyota                 2h46m44.000s
 2.  Martin Truex Jr     Waltrip Toyota                   + 0.700s
 3.  Jimmie Johnson      Hendrick Chevrolet               + 3.324s
 4.  Matt Kenseth        Roush Fenway Ford                + 8.017s
 5.  Greg Biffle         Roush Fenway Ford               + 14.317s
 6.  Kevin Harvick       Childress Chevrolet             + 14.498s
 7.  Dale Earnhardt Jr   Hendrick Chevrolet              + 18.621s
 8.  Kasey Kahne         Hendrick Chevrolet              + 21.953s
 9.  Carl Edwards        Roush Fenway Ford               + 24.049s
10.  Kyle Busch          Gibbs Toyota                    + 24.433s
11.  Brad Keselowski     Penske Dodge                    + 27.615s
12.  Juan Pablo Montoya  Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet     + 28.404s
13.  Tony Stewart        Stewart-Haas Chevrolet          + 30.714s
14.  Jamie McMurray      Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet       + 1 lap
15.  Joey Logano         Gibbs Toyota                      + 1 lap
16.  Marcos Ambrose      Petty Ford                        + 1 lap
17.  Kurt Busch          Phoenix Chevrolet                 + 1 lap
18.  Paul Menard         Childress Chevrolet               + 1 lap
19.  Sam Hornish Jr      Penske Dodge                      + 1 lap
20.  Ryan Newman         Stewart-Haas Chevrolet           + 2 laps
21.  Jeff Gordon         Hendrick Chevrolet               + 3 laps
22.  Jeff Burton         Childress Chevrolet              + 3 laps
23.  Aric Almirola       Petty Ford                       + 3 laps
24.  Regan Smith         Furniture Row Chevrolet          + 4 laps
25.  Travis Kvapil       BK Toyota                        + 4 laps
26.  Casey Mears         Germain Ford                     + 4 laps
27.  David Gilliland     Front Row Ford                   + 4 laps
28.  Reed Sorenson       FAS Lane Ford                    + 4 laps
29.  David Reutimann     Baldwin Chevrolet                + 5 laps
30.  David Ragan         Front Row Ford                   + 5 laps
31.  JJ Yeley            Robinson-Blakeney Toyota         + 6 laps
32.  AJ Allmendinger     Penske Dodge                    + 10 laps

Retirements:

     Mark Martin         Waltrip Toyota                   255 laps
     Landon Cassill      BK Toyota                        214 laps
     Bobby Labonte       JTG Daugherty Toyota             132 laps
     Clint Bowyer        Waltrip Toyota                   125 laps
     Dave Blaney         Balwin Chevrolet                  82 laps
     David Stremme       Inception Toyota                  80 laps
     Josh Wise           Front Row Ford                    65 laps
     Michael McDowell    Parsons Ford                      58 laps
     Joe Nemechek        NEMCO Toyota                      47 laps
     Mike Bliss          Humphrey Smith Toyota             27 laps
     Scott Riggs         R3 Chevrolet                      18 laps
450 posts

About author
Alasdair Lindsay is a Regular Contributor to TCF and can be found on twitter at @AlasdairLindsay
Articles
Related posts
NASCAR Cup Series

Former NASCAR team owner J.T. Lundy dies at 82

2 Mins read
John Thomas Lundy, who ran the Ranier-Lundy NASCAR Cup Series team alongside a controversial stint as a horse racing owner at Calumet Farm in the 1980s, died Wednesday at the age of 82.
NASCAR Cup Series

Cale Yarborough, 1939–2023

2 Mins read
Cale Yarborough, one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history with 3 Cup Series titles and experience at both Le Mans and the Indy 500, passed away Sunday at the age of 84.
NASCAR Cup Series

Anthony Alfredo joins Beard for 4 Cup races in 2024

2 Mins read
Anthony Alfredo has joined Beard Motorsports for a four-race NASCAR Cup Series slate in 2024 at Daytona 500, the Daytona summer race, and both Talladega events.