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Denny Hamlin winds up the fans, and that usually results in boos or jeers from the grandstands. However, the energy was different after the veteran driver won at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Hamlin turned humble, and fans absolutely loved his display of raw and honest emotion. With win number 60, he is now set to compete for the long-elusive championship at Phoenix. But there were a lot of storylines other than Hamlin’s triumph that need your attention.

Stage 1: Hamlin started on the pole, but it was his teammate, Chase Briscoe, who took command of the race until the green-flag pit stops. Ryan Blaney’s crash forced another pit cycle, and William Byron was the first to the line to win the first stage.

Stage 2: The Hendrick Chevys set the pace in the second stage. Briscoe’s team tried a strategy, but couldn’t catch up to Kyle Larson.

Final Stage: The HMS Chevys were playing a cat-and-mouse game with Byron in the lead. But a freak accident derailed the #24 team’s chances and allowed Hamlin to stage a late-race comeback.

Nothing is straightforward with Denny Hamlin and the #11 team, and this was the case when he entered the top 10 list of all-time winners in the NASCAR Cup Series. He lost his lead to Briscoe early in the race, had a bad pit stop during the second stage, and even traded blows with Larson for the runner-up position.

But with Byron losing his lead in the later stages of the race, Hamlin got back into contention. Unable to dominate, he was still running inside the top 5, and that proved vital for his late-race push. After avoiding a crash sparked by contact between Christopher Bell and Ty Gibbs, the #11 car started to gain momentum.

With 11 to go, the JGR driver threaded the needle to climb up to 4th position. Next thing you know, he was up against his old foe, Kyle Larson. It was an absolute banger, a battle between the two best drivers going all out to book a ticket to Phoenix. Larson tried everything he could to keep Hamlin at bay. Side-drafting, blocking his lane, and even making some contact, but it wasn’t enough.

Hamlin switched from the top lane to the bottom with 6 to go, and that allowed him to get past the stubborn #5 car. But he still had to beat Briscoe. The big advantage Hamlin had over his teammate was four tires. The #19 team opted for a two-tire stop to keep track position, and that gamble didn’t pay off. Hamlin made an easy pass with 4 to go, and that move allowed him to register win number 60.

It was good, hard racing, and Vegas sure delivered on the promise. For those who missed out on the live action, catch a glimpse of the race-winning moves made by Hamlin here. JGR and Toyota ensured their spot in the championship race, but as far as other teams are concerned, they are now in a tough spot. Especially the Penske Fords.

The Round of 8 race in Vegas turned out to be brutal for the title contenders. Points still play a huge role in determining their fate, and the table looks very different from last week.

Ryan Blaney was the biggest loser of the day. Starting the Vegas race placed second with a six-point cushion, he is now -31 after suffering an untimely crash. During the Stage 1 run, Blaney’s car suffered a flat tire, and he tried to keep his car from crashing, but couldn’t avoid a hard impact on the outside wall. Here, take a look at an incident that just might have ended Blaney’s championship hopes.

Joining his teammate is Joey Logano. This was the track from which he launched his title hunt with a win last year. But after the checkered flag dropped, he had to settle for a 6th-place finish. It is worth noting that the Penske driver started his weekend with a 24-point deficit, and despite achieving a top-10 finish, the points gap remains unchanged. Clearly, the Penske cars are now in a must-win situation, as banking on points could be a huge gamble.

Let’s talk about the big movers now. Kyle Larson finally showed up, and he got the points he needed out of Vegas. A win would’ve done wonders for him, but a jump from +4 to +35 is huge. Now all he has to do is avoid the chaos at Talladega and have a clean race. Stage points and a top-5 finish should do the trick for him next weekend.

Chase Briscoe also made an appearance in Sin City, and he would be largely content with the result. He had the speed, but a tire gamble put him in a tough spot late in the race. Entering Vegas, he was below the cutline, trying to overcome a 14-point gap, and he has turned the tables around. With a 15-point cushion, the JGR driver is now outside the drop zone and can focus on the two tracks ahead.

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“I beat your favorite driver” is perhaps the most iconic quote in NASCAR. This often riles up the fans, and as a result, Hamlin is used to a hostile reception. But something changed within the driver; his win at Vegas wasn’t a jab toward his rivals or the fans who are against him. Rather, this was a gratifying moment for the 44-year-old.

It is hard to see Hamlin tear up, but he couldn’t hold back his emotions while collecting the checkered flag. He dedicated his win to his father, who’s been struggling with his health, and even appreciated the fans. This was the most wholesome moment of the entire week, and it showed a different side of Hamlin. Check out his post-race interview if you haven’t already.

For Joey Logano, this was a tough race. He tried everything he could to repeat last year’s heroics, but he fell short. The JGR Toyotas and the HMS Chevys were the class of the field. Looking at the points standings, Logano made it clear: the #22 will be hunting for the win at the high banks of Talladega.

“I think it’s pretty clear what we’ve got to do, looking at the points. I mean, one spot’s already taken up. I think we’re 24 out. Yeah, it’s possible. You have to be pretty special the next two weeks without winning the race. Today, everyone ran so well, right? All the Playoff cars, besides the ones that wrecked, were top-five stage points all day. It’s hard to close up on them,” Logano said after the race.

Meanwhile, Briscoe had mixed feelings about his run that ended with a P4. From being in a spot to win a race and book his place in the Final 4, he now looks ahead to Talladega and Martinsville. “We’ve got to go (to Talladega), race, see what happens. Obviously, that’s where the biggest points swing is probably going to come for all of us… Go there, see what we can do, hopefully come out there on the plus side, maybe even win it, go on to Martinsville and see what we can do.”

Not just Logano and Briscoe, the HMS stars also couldn’t convert their race. Call it luck or bad execution; their inability to close out the Vegas race could come back to haunt them.

Continue Reading: Logano Points Finger at Bowman for Spoiling His Vegas Run

William Byron led 55 laps, won the first stage, and was marching toward the win late in the final stage. But just when things were looking up for the #24 team, calamity struck. We’ve seen Toyota teammates causing a ruckus among themselves in the playoffs, but this time around, it was Chevy teammates.

After fighting his car and losing the lead to Larson, Byron was doing his best to gather momentum. And just when he was trying to find his groove in the bottom lane, he rammed hard into Ty Dillon’s No. 10 Chevy. Dillon’s move toward pit road caught the HMS driver off guard, and he didn’t have enough time to avoid the crash. Here, take a look at Byron’s onboard view; he had no chance to save himself from the accident.

Joining Byron is his teammate, Kyle Larson. Ironically, the crash between the #24 and #10 was the worst possible scenario for Larson. Had the race remained green, he had the long-run speed and would’ve been in a spot to defend his position and lock himself into the championship race. But the late yellows didn’t help, and the JGR Toyotas were back in the mix.

Now, one might say that Larson has no reason to worry, given his points scenario. And then you look at the tracks that are up ahead. Talladega is a wild-card track, and “the big one” can wipe out almost half the field. There’s no hiding at this track. And it is worth noting that Ryan Blaney is the unofficial king of the fall Martinsville race.

Last year, the Penske driver was a menace to the HMS cars. He single-handedly took on both Larson and Elliott late in the race. Watch this bumper-banging action from last year’s controversial race to understand the current scenario. Penske cars are strong at Dega, and Blaney knows how to come up with a clutch performance at the paperclip. So this explains why the Vegas miss is a big upset for Larson.

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