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Yahoo
a day ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
NASCAR Power Rankings: Our updated top 10 drivers list. Denny Hamlin gets a grip
A week ago, it was suggested Denny Hamlin's hold on our top spot here was weakening. Scratch that thought. As the late, great Barney Hall would say, Denny drove the wheels off that Toyota Sunday at Dover. On older tires, through two restarts, and even losing the lead by a few feet on the next-to-last lap, he prevailed. Might it have been different if the two dudes battling with him in the later laps hadn't been teammates? Might, say, a Kyle Larson or Chase Elliott have approached with sharper elbows if given the chance? Don't know. Doesn't matter. Here we go ... 1. Denny Hamlin First to four wins this season, closing in on all-time top 10. 2. Chase Elliott On a good little roll but probably should've won at Dover. 3. Chase Briscoe Two straight runner-up finishes. Mitchell native races close to Indy home this week. 4. Kyle Larson Did decent Dover reset his summer? Brickyard will tell us where this team now sits. 5. Tyler Reddick One Ty too many. He won't race for a million bucks at Indy. 6. Alex Bowman Will finish seventh this week as he continues turning around his 2025. 7. Christopher Bell Bad on ovals since late spring. How about rectangular ovals? 8. Chris Buescher Needs to dial in his iron play because he's spent too much time on the fringes this season. 9. Ryan Blaney The Penske team has some home-court advantage this week. Does Roger cook breakfast? 10. Joey Logano 0-for-16 on the Brickyard oval and road course, combined. This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR Top 10: From Denny Hamlin to Joey Logano, with Indy race on tap
Yahoo
a day ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
NASCAR: Winners, Losers from Denny Hamlin's Echopark Automotive 400 Win at Dover
The NASCAR Cup Series hit Dover Motor Speedway on Sunday afternoon, the 21st points race of the regular season. There are now only five races remaining on the NASCAR schedule before the playoffs begin and the 'Monster Mile' added to the intensity for Sunday's race in an overtime finish.. Let's dive into our winners and losers from Sunday's NASCAR race at Dover. Winner: Denny Hamlin NASCAR fans certainly wouldn't have been happy if Denny Hamlin had won Sunday's race because of rain. Fortunately, we got overtime. Hamlin faced challenges from Christopher Bell and later Chase Briscoe, but he held off both despite running on significantly older tires. He earned the victory with outstanding tire management and clean, competitive racing. It was a well-deserved fourth win of the season. Loser: Shane van Gisbergen After winning three road course races in the last five weeks, everyone knew that Shane van Gisbergen would struggle at Dover Motor Speedway. What hurt is what happened minutes into the race, when he reported an issue that required an early stop to pit lane. SVG's call to pit was the right one; he had a puncture in his right front tire, but it put him 4 laps down. He's still near the top of the playoff picture for the playoffs at 3 wins, but the No. 88 car didn't do him any favors after he started sixth (based on metric score), which could've been a golden opportunity for him to practice racing near the front of the field at Dover. Related: Winner: Kyle Larson Without having qualifying to place him near the start of the field, Kyle Larson started Sunday's race in 25th. He worked his way to 10th (1 point) at the end of Stage 1 and kept himself near the front of the field for the rest of the day. While Larson didn't come away with the victory, which would've solidified him in first place in the playoff picture, he did a great job climbing his way through the field to narrow the gap in the regular-season standings after a rough summer dropped him back. Loser: Chase Elliott's jackman and crew chief After earning the pole position for the EchoPark Automotive 400 based on the metric score, Chase Elliott was dominant through the first 170-plus laps on Sunday. With the advantage of clean air, he seemed perfectly positioned to go from pole to checkered flag at Dover, so long as disaster didn't strike on pit road. Unfortunately for Elliott, that's exactly what happened. The jack plate didn't get fully positioned under the jack post on the driver's side, causing it to slip out and cost valuable time. He came off pit road in sixth place after leading 171 laps during the first two stages. Fortunately for Elliott, his entire pit crew made up for it on the next pit stop and got him back on the front row. Then, crew chief Alan Gustafson made the baffling decision to bring him down pit road to take two tires and that took Elliott off the front row. Elliott did everything he needed to earn a win on Sunday, unfortunately, certain members of his team let him down. Winner: Alex Bowman Alex Bowman was easily one of, if not the, best drivers on Sunday. He quickly worked his way into the top 10 early, showing the best long-run speed on the track. Bowman converted that speed into 15 stage points—some much-needed breathing room in the playoff race, given the strong likelihood that we'll see at least one more new race winner in the next five weeks. It was a phenomenal day at the track for Bowman and the No. 48 team. Loser: A.J. Allmendinger's car lets him down A.J. Allmendinger looked good early on Sunday, working his way up from 17th to 10th with just a few laps to go in Stage 1. Unfortunately, his tire started to come undone and it dropped him to the middle of the pack. In Stage 2, he started to show that same speed again and then encountered brake problems that ended his day. What happened on Sunday certainly doesn't fall on Allmendinger; the car just let him down. Winner: Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports The two best teams in NASCAR showcased their dominance at Dover. Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs, and Christopher Bell all led at least one lap, and each of them spent the majority of Sunday inside the top 10. JGR and Hendrick finished with the top six spots at the checkered flag, further strengthening their separation from the rest of the field in the team standings. Loser: Trackhouse Racing It was a day to forget for Trackhouse Racing. Beyond the issues that Shane van Gisbergen experienced, which kept him at the back of the field throughout Sunday's race, there were also problems with the No. 77 car. During Carson Hocevar's pit stop in Stage 2, the fuel tank was dropped and landed outside the pit stall, resulting in a penalty. It put Hocevar a lap down, and additional issues just minutes later forced him to have his car checked out. As for Daniel Suárez, his only notable moment was frustrating Chase Elliott for a few laps to avoid falling a lap down, but he eventually lost that battle. Read More: Loser: Joey Logano Already locked into the NASCAR Playoffs, Joey Logano and the No. 22 team cost themselves some valuable positioning for September. With rain on the horizon, instead of running long, the team brought Logano into pit lane. The gamble backfired, as Logano was penalized and dropped to 27th. Moments later, the caution came out for a brief rain delay. What could've been a promising points day for Logano turned into a major blunder in the final stage. Winner: Bubba Wallace Realistically, Bubba Wallace probably won't get the win necessary to make the NASCAR playoffs. He also doesn't have the strongest track record at Dover, which made Sunday's performance especially important. He finished seventh after starting outside the top 20, increasing his lead over Ryan Preece to +16 after entering the day at +3. There is still a strong likelihood he will need to overtake Chris Buescher, who is 28 points ahead of Wallace, but Sunday at least improved Wallace's playoff odds. Related Headlines NASCAR points leaders: Cup Series points leaders, NASCAR playoff picture after Dover NASCAR results today: EchoPark Automotive 400 winner, NASCAR Cup Series stage results today Donald Trump Threatens to Block Washington Commanders' New Stadium and Force Name Change Seattle Seahawks Release Former First-Round Pick
Yahoo
a day ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
NASCAR points leaders: Cup Series points leaders, NASCAR playoff picture after Dover
The NASCAR schedule took us to Dover Motor Speedway this weekend, with Sunday's Cup Series race representing the 21st points race of the regular season. The conclusion of the EchoPark Automotive 400 means there are only five races left before the playoffs. Following the NASCAR results today, here are the Cup Series points leaders heading into Indianapolis. Let's dive into the NASCAR Cup Series points leaders after Dover. As always, we use to indicate the driver would make the playoffs if the season ended today and (*) indicates the driver won a race this season. Related: NASCAR points leaders after today Position Driver Points Behind 1 Chase Elliott* (P) 702 — 2 William Byron* (P) 685 -17 3 Kyle Larson* (P) 664 -38 4 Denny Hamlin* (P) 663 -39 5 Tyler Reddick (P) 640 -62 6 Christopher Bell* (P) 635 -67 7 Ryan Blaney* (P) 576 -126 8 Chase Briscoe* (P) 570 -132 9 Alex Bowman (P) 547 -155 10 Chris Buescher (P) 528 -174 11 Joey Logano* (P) 524 -178 12 Ross Chastain* (P) 517 -185 13 Bubba Wallace (P) 500 -202 14 Ryan Preece 484 -218 15 Kyle Busch 461 -241 16 Ty Gibbs 448 -254 17 Michael McDowell 423 -279 18 AJ Allmendinger 420 -282 19 Austin Cindric* (P) 417 -285 20 Erik Jones 411 -291 21 John Hunter Nemechek 400 -302 22 Josh Berry* (P) 399 -303 23 Ricky Stenhouse Jr 392 -310 24 Zane Smith 388 -314 25 Carson Hocevar 375 -327 26 Shane van Gisbergen* (P) 374 -328 27 Brad Keselowski 360 -342 28 Austin Dillon 353 -349 29 Daniel Suarez 341 -361 30 Ty Dillon 337 -365 31 Justin Haley 337 -365 32 Todd Gilliland 333 -369 33 Noah Gragson 272 -430 34 Cole Custer 263 -439 35 Riley Herbst 251 -451 36 Cody Ware 148 -554 Related Headlines Report: NASCAR to Race in San Diego in 2026, Location Revealed for Street Race WNBA All-Star Broadcast Controversy: ESPN Host Shocks With Risqué Remark NASCAR: Winners, Losers from Denny Hamlin's Echopark Automotive 400 Win at Dover NASCAR results today: EchoPark Automotive 400 winner, NASCAR Cup Series stage results today
San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Automotive
- San Francisco Chronicle
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. 'I thought I did everything I needed to,' Briscoe said. 'I thought I had him there for a second. I wish the Camry, the back, was about 3 inches shorter. I was so close to clearing him. I just couldn't do it. Obviously, racing a teammate, I wanted to make sure at least a JGR car won.' 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 — who was the betting favorite to win, per BETMGM Sportsbook —- had enough to win on cool tires at Dover and park the Toyota in victory lane. 'We've got a lot left,' Hamlin said. He became the 19th Cup driver to win three times at Dover and the 13th driver to win consecutive races on the mile concrete track. 'I just studied some of the greats here,' Hamlin said. 'I was very fortunate to have Martin Truex as a teammate. Jimmie Johnson, watching him win (11) times here. You learn from the greats and you change your game to match it, you have success like this.' In-season challenge The Tys have it in NASCAR. It's Ty Gibbs vs. Ty Dillon next week at Indianapolis to decide the first winner in NASCAR's $1 million mid-season tournament. NASCAR seeded 32 drivers for the first In-season Challenge, a five-race, bracket-style tournament that mirrors the NCAA basketball tournaments. Both drivers are winless and Dillon made it as the No. 32 seed. Gibbs finished fifth Sunday for JGR. John Hunter Nemechek and Tyler Reddick were eliminated. Logano's 600th Joey Logano finished 14th for Team Penske in his 600th career start. Logano has made every start since the 2009, 597 straight, putting him within striking distance of Jeff Gordon's Cup record of 797 straight starts. Logano was 35 years, 1 month, 26 days old when he hits No. 600 on Sunday, making him the youngest driver to reach that milestone. He topped seven-time NASCAR champion and Hall of Famer Richard Petty by six months. Petty is the only driver to have won his 600th start. 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.
Fox Sports
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Denny Hamlin survives rain delay, overtime finish to win for 2nd straight year at Dover
Associated Press 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: recommended Item 1 of 2
