Denny Hamlin survives rain delay, overtime finish to win for 2nd straight year at Dover
DOVER, Del. (AP) — Denny Hamlin went back-to-back at Dover Motor Speedway, holding a late lead through a rain delay and an overtime finish Sunday for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver's series-best fourth victory of the season.
Hamlin won in the No. 11 Toyota for the second straight time at Dover to add to wins this season at Martinsville, Darlington and Michigan.
Hamlin has 58 NASCAR Cup Series victories, leaving him, two short of Kevin Harvick for 10th on the career list. The 44-year-old Virginia driver might hit that mark this season as he chases his first career Cup championship.
'Winning here at Dover is super special to me,' Hamlin said. 'This is a place that I've not been very good at the first half of my career. To go back-to-back here the last two years is amazing.'
Hamlin took the checkered flag days after he suffered a setback in court with his own 23XI Racing team's federal antitrust suit against NASCAR.
On Thursday, a federal judge rejected a request from 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports to continue racing with charters while they battle NASCAR in court, meaning their six cars will race as open entries this weekend at Dover, next week at Indianapolis and perhaps longer than that in a move the teams say would put them at risk of going out of business.
Hamlin vowed this weekend 'all will be exposed' if the case goes to its scheduled Dec. 1 trial date.
The courtroom drama hasn't affected Hamlin's performance on the track. Hamlin held off JGR teammate Chase Briscoe for the victory. Hendrick Motorsports drivers took the next two spots, with Alex Bowman third and Kyle Larson fourth.
Hamlin held off Kyle Larson down the stretch last season to earn the second of his three career wins at the Monster Mile.
The first July Cup race at Dover since 1969 started with steamy weather and drivers battled the conditions inside the car during a relatively clean race until rain fell late and red-flagged the race with 14 laps left. Hamlin said the during the break he planned to change his firesuit — temperatures inside the car soared to 140 degrees.
He also returned to the car after the 56-minute delay with old tires. Hamlin had enough to win at Dover and park the Toyota in victory lane.
'We've got a lot left,' Hamlin said. Up next
It's off to Indianapolis Motor Speedway where Kyle Larson won last season on the oval after a four-year break on the road course.
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
recommended
Item 1 of 2
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Kansas coach Bill Self underwent heart procedure after experiencing ‘concerning symptoms'
Kansas men's basketball coach Bill Self was hospitalized after he experienced 'some concerning symptoms,' the school said in a statement Thursday. Self, who underwent a heart procedure, is expected to make a full recovery and is set to be released from Lawrence Memorial Hospital 'soon.' 'Kansas men's basketball coach Bill Self felt unwell and experienced some concerning symptoms Thursday,' Kansas said in a statement. 'He was transported to Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where he had two stents inserted. Jayhawks head coach Bill Self is seen on the sidelines during the second half of Kansas' 98-94 win over UCF in the Big 12 Conference tournament on March 12, 2025. AP 'The procedure went very well, and he is expected to make a full recovery. He is in good spirits and expects to be released from the hospital soon.' Self was also hospitalized midway through the 2023 season because of a blockage in his arteries, where the 62-year-old had a standard heart catheterization and two stents placed. The longtime Jayhawks coach responded well to that procedure, according to the University of Kansas Health System. Self's most recent hospitalization comes amid a busy offseason for Kansas after a disappointing season in which the Jayhawks got bounced in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Kansas head coach Bill Self yells during the Jayhawks' 81-65 win over Villanova in the Final Four on April 2, 2022. AP Self said his program has started to take a different approach regarding acquiring talent from the transfer portal this year by shifting away from the traditional rankings. 'It seemed like, to me, this year we emphasized more not what other people thought of rankings and stuff like that,' Self told 247Sports this week. 'Not that that was our emphasis before, but the appearance is, 'Well, you go out and get the guys that are the highest rated guys that are in the portal,' which is good. You get Hunter. That's a great get. 'But I think the emphasis was more on what we needed to do to allow us to play as athletic and to play the style that best suits us and best fits me for winning, and I think we were actually able to do that.'
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Severino and Urias power Athletics to a 5-2 win over the AL West-leading Astros
HOUSTON (AP) — Luis Severino struck out eight in seven innings and Luis Urias homered to lead the Athletics to a 5-2 victory over the AL West-leading Houston Astros on Thursday night. Severino (4-11) allowed four hits and two earned runs as the A's snapped a four-game skid. Mason Miller earned his 20th save. Urias hit his eighth homer in the sixth inning and finished with two hits. Nick Kurtz went 3 for 5 with an RBI double in the two-run fourth inning. Max Schuemann also knocked in a run in the inning on a fielder's choice grounder. Christian Walker drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to right field and Victor Caratini scored on a groundout by Cam Smith — all in the seventh inning — for the Astros, who had their four-game winning streak halted. Jason Alexander (1-1), a former member of the Athletics who was claimed off waivers in May, allowed five earned runs and 11 hits in six innings. The 32-year-old right-hander finished with three strikeouts and two walks. Up Next Athletics LHP Jeffery Springs (8-7) will go in the second game of the four-game series. The Astros have not announced a starter. ___
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Henderson's go-ahead RBI single helps Orioles edge Guardians
CLEVELAND (AP) — Gunnar Henderson singled in Alex Jackson with the go-ahead run in the seventh inning and Charlie Morton matched his longest start of the season, helping the Baltimore Orioles to a 4-3 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday afternoon. Henderson's liner to right came against Erik Sabrowski, giving the loss to Guardians starter Logan Allen (6-9). The Orioles won for the second time in nine games and avoided a four-game series sweep. Morton (6-8) went 6 2/3 innings and threw a season-high 107 pitches, giving up three runs while striking out seven. Gregory Soto tossed a clean ninth for his first save, filling in for injured closer Félix Bautista, who is on the injured list with right shoulder discomfort. Steven Kwan hit a pair of solo homers and Nolan Jones had a sacrifice fly for Cleveland, which is 11-3 since July 7 and wrapped up its homestand with five wins in seven contests. The Guardians' current surge came immediately after they lost 10 straight. BLUE JAYS 11, TIGERS 4 DETROIT (AP) — Ernie Clement and Joey Loperfido hit back-to back hit home runs in the fifth inning to help surging Toronto rout slumping Detroit in a matchup of first-place teams going in opposite directions. The AL East-leading Blue Jays have won 19 of their last 24 games, and the AL Central-leading Tigers have lost 10 of 11. Clement's three-run home run gave Toronto a 4-1 lead and Loperfido followed with a soaring, solo shot to right field. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a game-tying double in the sixth to bring home the first of five runs in the inning. Guerrero's RBI double in the four-run seventh helped the Blue Jays pull away with a 9-1 lead. The Blue Jays didn't let up, going ahead 11-1 in the eighth on Nathan Lukes' two-run homer. ATHLETICS 5, ASTROS 2 HOUSTON (AP) — Luis Severino struck out eight in seven innings and Luis Urias homered to lead the Athletics to a victory over AL West-leading Houston. Severino (4-11) allowed four hits and two earned runs as the A's snapped a four-game skid. Mason Miller earned his 20th save. Urias hit his eighth homer in the sixth inning and finished with two hits. Nick Kurtz went 3 for 5 with an RBI double in the two-run fourth inning. Max Schuemann also knocked in a run in the inning on a fielder's choice grounder. Christian Walker drove in a run with a sacrifice fly to right field and Victor Caratini scored on a groundout by Cam Smith — all in the seventh inning — for the Astros, who had their four-game winning streak halted. Jason Alexander (1-1), a former member of the Athletics who was claimed off waivers in May, allowed five earned runs and 11 hits in six innings. The 32-year-old right-hander finished with three strikeouts and two walks. CARDINALS 9, PADRES 7 ST. LOUIS (AP) — Brendan Donovan and Willson Contreras hit three-run homers in the second inning and St. Louis beat San Diego in the opener of a four-game series. Willson had with four RBIs and Donovan finished with three hits. Iván Herrera had three hits and two RBIs, including a solo homer in the sixth. Sonny Gray (10-4) gave up seven runs — six earned — on 11 hits with five strikeouts in five innings. Ryan Helsley pitched a scoreless ninth for his 20th save. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado each had three hits for San Diego. Tatis led off the third with a home run and Machado added a two-run shot that made it 7-5. The Associated Press
