Denny Hamlin wins Federated Auto Parts 400 at Home Track

Credit: Carol D'Agostino for Skirts and Scuffs
by Carol D'Agostino

All eyes were on the Chase bubble drivers Saturday night as the final regular season NASCAR Sprint Cup race ran at Richmond International Raceway. The pre-race story lines focused on drivers like Jamie McMurray who were in the Chase field by points, and those on the outside like Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne and Ryan Blaney.

As the laps clicked by, 32 pit road penalties and a record number of cautions (16) were recorded. The most serious caution was an eight-car fiery wreck on Lap 364 which red-flagged the race for 20 minutes, 23 seconds. The incident occurred when the Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman made contact, ending Newman's playoff hopes. 

In the end, Virginia native Denny Hamlin, who started on the pole, took the checkered flag. It was Hamlin’s 29th victory in 388 Cup Series races and his third win in 21 Richmond starts. The hometown win gives Hamlin his third win and 15th top-10 finish in 2016.

Martin Truex Jr. led the most laps with 193, though the race winner was close behind, leading 189 circuits. Despite having a dominant car all evening, the closing laps were nerve-racking for Hamlin.

“I was literally counting the seconds down knowing I needed 20 more seconds, 15 more seconds until just get to the white, then I was going to be fine," Hamlin said. "I saw smoke up ahead, and knew there was an issue. But I definitely didn't want to see it because I knew with the shortage of tires, it was just going to be interesting to see how it played out. I thought for sure we were going to have to come to pit.  But he (crew chief Mike Wheeler) knew how many cars that were going to stay out behind us and the buffer we were going to have and made the right call there."

Kyle Larson, who earned his first Sprint Cup win in August at Michigan, finished second, posting his first top-10 finish at Richmond, while Martin Truex Jr. finished third, for his seventh top 10 at the track.

Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders Chris Buescher and Chase Elliott finished 24th and 19th, respectively. Ironically these drivers became the first rookies to make the playoffs since Denny Hamlin did it in 2006.

For full Federated Auto Parts 400 race results, click here.

The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup begins next weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. For the full Round One Chase grid: http://www.nascar.com/grid.html

Credit: Carol D'Agostino for Skirts and Scuffs

Denny Hamlin wins Federated Auto Parts 400 at Home Track Denny Hamlin wins Federated Auto Parts 400 at Home Track Reviewed by Carol D'Agostino on Sunday, September 11, 2016 Rating: 5

7 comments

  1. Looking for that car you have always wanted, but feel your budget may not allow you to purchase a brand new one? Then the perfect place to look for it is in a federal auto auction. A federal auction is an opportunity to own the cars which you only dream of at affordable prices.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Individuals who need moderate approaches to purchase autos ought to consider purchasing at government auto barters. In the event that you don't know much about them, they are unquestionably worth finding out about since these closeouts offer some phenomenal autos at amazingly low costs.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Great Post, I think you would like to know about important part of car maintenance,Steering Knuckle. the steering knuckle is the part that contains the wheel hub or spindle, it attaches to the suspension components. It is randomly called a steering knuckle, spindle, upright or hub. The wheel and tire assembly connected to the hub or spindle of the knuckle where the tire or wheel rotates while being kept in a stable plane of motion by the knuckle/suspension assembly. In attached photograph of a double-wishbone suspension, the knuckle is depicted attached to the upper control arm at the zenith and the lower control arm at the bottom. The wheel assembly is shown fastened to the knuckle at its pivot point. Arm of the knuckle that sticks out, to which the steering mechanism joint to turn the knuckle and wheel assembly.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wanted to thank you for this great read. I definitely enjoying every little bit of it I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you post. Racing Sleeve

    ReplyDelete