Hamlin Wins Gateway To Advance In Cup Series Playoffs

Denny Hamlin takes the checkered flag to win at World Wide Technology Raceway. (David Rosenblum/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

MADISON, Ill. – If Denny Hamlin has anything to say about it, the road to the NASCAR Cup Series championship runs through him after his late dominance Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Leading a race-high 75 laps in the Enjoy Illinois 300, Hamlin earned his league-best fifth win of the season and first at the 1.25-mile flat oval, ending a two-year string of bridesmaid performances in the shadow of the iconic Gateway Arch.

The 44-year-old from Chesterfield, Va., survived a gauntlet of shifting strategy and a late-race restart with 25 to go to punch his ticket to the second round of the postseason, pulling away from Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe down the stretch.

Hamlin, who started from the pole position, took control for good after passing leader Brad Keselowski on the final green flag.

Keselowski stayed out on 45-lap older tires, hoping to nurse his Ford to the finish after the day’s 10th and final caution period, but Hamlin simply had more pure pace and drove away to his 59th career Cup Series victory – as well as the milestone 200th win for Toyota at stock car racing’s premier level.

“It’s so big for everyone at Toyota [and] Joe Gibbs Racing to have this moment,” said Hamlin after a smoky burnout that spanned nearly the length of the front straightaway. “Our Progressive Toyota was great there at the end. So happy to get this victory. … [A] fantastic day. This couldn’t be any better.

“It was harder to win today [than to execute the burnout]. I felt like I didn’t do a very good job on restarts earlier in the race, but got a little better toward the end and we got our car better as the race went on as well,” Hamlin added later on. “Chris [Gayle, crew chief] and the whole team did a great job to make adjustments and get me where I needed to be, especially that last run to the finish.”

Hamlin was far from the dominant car early, as he led just six laps at the start before a charging Kyle Larson took control of the field for the first stint.

But it was two other Toyota drivers in Hamlin’s JGR teammate Chase Briscoe and 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace that ended up as the two stage winners, with the eventual victor only coming back into the main picture during the final 100-lap segment.

Hamlin took the lead back on a lap-156 restart and easily held control at the front until he pitted with 65 laps left, relatively early in a cycle of green-flag pit stops that opened the door for others to attempt to stretch fuel mileage to the finish.

Denny Hamlin celebrates in victory lane at World Wide Technology Raceway. (Rusty Jarrett/Nigel Kinrade Photography)

Keselowski was one of those, but when Ty Dillon lost a brake rotor and spun on approach to turn one to bring the yellow flag out on lap 209, that strategy was effectively negated and Hamlin, Briscoe, and others were right back in the mix.

The die was cast once Hamlin made the winning pass on the race-ending restart, with Briscoe coming back to a runner-up finish despite two left-rear tire issues on pit road that hampered his progress.

“I would say our strength was our speed,” Briscoe said. “We had a really good Bass Pro Shops Toyota. Our weakness was just the sloppiness. Whether it was me behind the wheel or [on] pit road. I don't know what the left rear issue was.”

Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott led the Chevrolet camp with a third-place finish, while Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney fought back to fourth after spinning late in stage two due to contact from Kyle Larson.

Blaney’s teammate, defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano, filled out the top five.

Sixth through 10th were John Hunter Nemechek, Christopher Bell, Wallace, Chris Buescher, and Ty Gibbs.

All four JGR entries finished inside the top 10 Sunday, while Nemechek was the best among the non-playoff contenders and extended his recent run of late-summer consistency.

A lap-35 crash after a bump from Elliott ended the day for Wood Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry, who is 45 points below 12th place and in virtual must-win territory entering the Round of 16 cutoff race on Sept. 13 at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.

Also below the cut line and in danger of early elimination from the postseason are Alex Bowman, Shane van Gisbergen, and Austin Dillon, though Dillon is highest among that quartet and heads to The Last Great Colosseum just 11 points back of advancement.

Broadcast coverage of the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol airs next Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET, live on USA, the Performance Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.