Denny Hamlin races at Nashville hoping birth of his third child holds off
LEBANON, Tenn. (AP) — Denny Hamlin chose to race Sunday night in the NASCAR Cup Series at Nashville Superspeedway to try to take advantage of his starting spot spot beside pole-sitter Chase Briscoe.
Whether Hamlin would chase his third win this season had been in question with his third child, a boy, due Sunday.
Hamlin said Saturday he didn't have a timeline for a final decision. His biggest challenge is needing an eight-hour window to travel home. He came into this race as the BetMGM Sportsbook's odds' on favorite to win. He's currently sixth in the points race for Joe Gibbs Racing.
He practiced and qualified well, so Hamlin crawled inside his No. 11 Toyota. Joe Gibbs Racing had Ryan Truex on standby in case Hamlin got the call that his fiancee was in labor.
Tyler Reddick beat Hamlin, a co-owner of his 23XI Racing team, to new parent status. Reddick announced on social media earlier Sunday that his family welcomed their second son at 2:20 a.m. on May 25.
Reddick followed up that delivery by racing and finished 26th that night in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte.
Punishment and more penalties possible?
AJ Allmendinger started at the back of the field and also had to perform a stop-and-go penalty after the green flag for an unapproved adjustment to the splitter during Saturday's practice. His No. 16 Chevrolet was sent back to the garage and then the scanning station before practice and qualifying.
Allmendinger also lost pit stall selection, and his crew chief Jaron Antley was ejected for the rest of this weekend with his hard card confiscated.
The No. 66 Ford of Chad Finchum failed inspection twice leading to engineer Austin Webb's ejection. The Garage 66 team also lost pit stall selection.
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Motor 1
16 minutes ago
- Motor 1
Next-Gen Shelby GT500 Looks Menacing in New Spy Shots
Since the debut of the S650 Mustang in 2023, we've been waiting for a hardcore Shelby model. Rumors of the high-performance muscle car have been circulating for years, but nothing's been made official. That'll likely change soon, judging by these spy photos of a seemingly complete Shelby GT500 mule captured driving around Michigan. Our spy photographer managed to snag some detailed photos of this camouflaged GT500 prototype stalking around on the street ahead of a reveal likely to take place later this year. The front fascia wears a thick layer of netting and tarp to conceal changes to the front end, though we can see wider openings for the upper and lower grilles, as well as some outer bulges on the hood. Photo by: KGP Photography Photo by: KGP Photography Photo by: KGP Photography The rear end is more of the same, with a makeshift blanket covering the bumper, and polka-dot camouflage on the fenders and trunk lid. The thin quad-exhaust pipes are clearly not production ready, while the wing looks to be lifted straight from the lesser Mustang GT . The wheels and tires are the most fascinating part of this tester. Look closely, and you'll see the tires measure 305/30ZR20 up front and 315/30ZR20 in the rear—coincidentally, these are the same exact sizes found on the last-generation GT500. The tires themselves are Pirelli P Zero Rs with "Prototype Use Only" text on the sidewalls. Unlike the last GT500 prototype we saw, this one isn't using carbon fiber wheels, but more traditional alloys. In all likelihood, this wheel and tire setup will likely be the base offering for the upcoming GT500, with a carbon fiber wheel and stickier tire offered as the sportier option. Photo by: KGP Photography There's no official word on what sort of engine will power the next GT500, but we have a pretty good idea of what to expect, thanks to a leaked union memo from the Dearborn engine plant in Michigan. The document, whose contents were confirmed by the Detroit Free Press through internal sources, showed plans to produce an engine nicknamed "Legend." The plant currently builds the supercharged 5.2-liter V-8 found in the Raptor R. That same motor powered the last GT500 , making 760 horsepower and 625 pound-feet of torque. So it makes sense for the factory to supply the next car's engine, too. Power is still a question mark, though we wouldn't be surprised to see the next GT500 make over 800 hp, possibly matching the track-ready Mustang GTD . Judging by how ready-for-production this prototype looks, we probably won't have to wait much longer to find out. Gallery: 2026 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 Spy Shots 22 Source: KGP Photography More on the Upcoming GT500 2026 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500: Everything We Know Leaked Document Hints at New Shelby GT500 Get the best news, reviews, columns, and more delivered straight to your inbox, daily. back Sign up For more information, read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use . Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
USA Today
18 minutes ago
- USA Today
Tennessee baseball practices on grass ahead of 2025 Fayetteville Super Regional
Tennessee baseball practices on grass ahead of 2025 Fayetteville Super Regional No. 14 national seed Tennessee (46-17) won the NCAA Tournament Knoxville Regional on Monday. The Vols will next play in a Fayetteville Super Regional at No. 3 national seed Arkansas (46-13). The best-of-three series will be contested, Saturday-Monday, at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Baum-Walker Stadium has a real grass playing surface. Tennessee practiced Wednesday away from Lindsey Nelson Stadium before traveling to Arkansas. The Vols practiced at Covenant Health Park, home of the Cubs' Double-A affiliate Knoxville Smokies. Covenant Health Park opened April 15 and has a real grass playing surface. "We were happy to host a practice for the reigning national champion Tennessee Vols this morning," the Smokies announced. "We wish them the best of luck in Arkansas! Go Vols, and go Smokies!" Game 1 between the Vols and Razorbacks in the Fayetteville Super Regional is scheduled for 5 p.m. EDT on Saturday, and will be televised by ESPN. The second game will take place Sunday at 3 p.m. EDT (ESPN), while first pitch for Monday's if necessary series finale is to be determined. More: Christian Moore returns to Knoxville at Covenant Health Park More: Former Vol transfer commit Ryan Galanie hits game-winning grand slam at Covenant Health Park Follow Vols Wire on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter).
Associated Press
24 minutes ago
- Associated Press
FanDuel bans bettor over heckling incident with Olympic champion sprinter Gabby Thomas
A sports bettor who heckled Olympic champion sprinter Gabby Thomas during a Grand Slam Track event in Philadelphia over the weekend has been banned by the betting site FanDuel Sportsbook. In a statement sent to The Associated Press on Wednesday, FanDuel wrote it 'condemns in the strongest terms abusive behavior directed towards athletes. Threatening or harassing athletes is unacceptable and has no place in sports. This customer is no longer able to wager with FanDuel.' Last weekend, Thomas finished fourth in a 100-meter race won by Melissa Jefferson-Wooden. The bettor wrote in a post on social media that he 'made Gabby lose by heckling her. And it made my parlay win.' He posted a picture of his parlay that had Jefferson-Wooden winning the 100. Thomas, the 200-meter champion at the Paris Games last summer, explained the heckling incident on X. She wrote: 'This grown man followed me around the track as I took pictures and signed autographs for fans (mostly children) shouting personal insults — anybody who enables him online is gross.' Grand Slam Track, a track league launched by Hall of Fame sprinter Michael Johnson this spring, wrote in a statement it was 'conducting a full investigation into the reprehensible behavior captured on video. 'We are working to identify the individual involved and will take appropriate action as necessary. We will implement additional safeguards to help prevent incidents like this in the future. Let us be clear, despicable behavior like this will not be tolerated.' ESPN first reported the bettor had been banned by FanDuel. The Grand Slam Track season wraps up with the fourth and final meet in Los Angeles on June 28-29. The Thomas incident is the latest in a string of stalking and abuse of female athletes. Frida Karlsson , a Swedish cross-country skiing world champion, recently brought her experience with stalking into public view when she went through a trial. A man in his 60s was given a suspended sentence and ordered to pay 40,000 kronor ($4,100) in damages after being convicted of stalking Karlsson for a year and four months, according to Swedish news agency TT. The man, according to the indictment, called Karlsson 207 times, left her voicemails and text messages and approached her, including outside her apartment. In February, police in the United Arab Emirates detained a man who caused British tennis player Emma Raducanu distress by exhibiting ' fixated behavior ' toward he at a tennis tournament. Raducanu had been approached by the man at the Dubai Championships where he left her a note, took her photograph and engaged in behavior that caused her distress, according to the government of Dubai's media office. ___ AP Sports Writers Mark Anderson and Schuyler Dixon contributed to this report. ___ AP sports:
