Hamlin ends Joe Gibbs Racing’s skid
LOUDON, N.H. - Denny Hamlin held off Kyle Larson over the final laps Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and send Joe Gibbs Racing to victory lane for the first time this season.
One of the top organizations in NASCAR, JGR had yet to have any of its four drivers win until Hamlin took the lead with 33 laps left and held off the hard-charging Larson on the final lap.
Hamlin needed his 30th career Cup victory to secure a berth in NASCAR’s version of the postseason and end a winless streak that stretched to last September at Richmond.
“Definitely needed a win for the organization, for myself,” Hamlin said.
Larson had a sensational run from the rear of the field, where he was forced to start because he failed inspection after he won the pole. Larson lost his points lead last week and his crew chief was suspended after failing a post-race inspection at Kentucky.
Hamlin crashed the No. 11 Toyota in practice and was forced to race in a backup car. It seemed to suit him just fine at New Hampshire.
Martin Truex Jr., was third, followed by Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick.
JGR won seven of the first 12 races last season and Carl Edwards was 10 laps away from a possible championship when he crashed out in the finale. Daniel Suarez replaced Edwards this season and Hamlin, Kenseth and Kyle Busch have made strong runs at the checkered flag, they just couldn’t find the winning formula until New Hampshire.
“It’s not from a lack of trying,” Hamlin said.
Newgarden races to second Toronto IndyCar win in 3 years: Josef Newgarden raced to his second Toronto IndyCar title in three years Sunday, dominating on the streets surrounding Exhibition Place.
Newgarden came out in front on Lap 25 after a crash by Tony Kanaan caused a caution and maintained an advantage of over two seconds for the majority of the rest of the race. The American has five career victories, also winning in Alabama in April.
Newgarden gave Team Penske its 193rd victory, the most of any team.
Alexander Rossi was second, and James Hinchcliffe finished third in his hometown race for the second straight year. Marco Andretti was third, followed by Simon Pagenaud, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Max Chilton, Helio Castroneves, Graham Rahal and series leader Scott Dixon.
Dixon has a three-point lead over Castroneves with five races left.
Kanaan had his brakes lock up while leaving the pits and connected with the protective tires in Turn 1. The caution caused the top-three cars of Castroneves, Pagenaud and Rahal to fall back.
Thundershowers were a threat throughout the race but held off. It started out sunny and humid, then clouded over during the event and it rained lightly at a few points.
Esteban Gutierrez, the rookie who crashed late in qualifying Saturday, was cleared to race after experiencing concussion-like symptoms. He finished 14th.
Hamilton wins British GP, cuts Vettel’s F1 lead to 1 point: Lewis Hamilton slashed Sebastian Vettel’s Formula One championship lead to one point by winning a record-equaling fifth British Grand Prix on Sunday, with his title rival capitulating after a late puncture.
“We were generally faultless,” Hamilton said after crowd-surfing with the Silverstone crowd at his home race.
Vettel was in third heading into the penultimate lap at Silverstone but the Ferrari driver fell back into seventh place after his front left tire shredded.
So too did the 20-point lead Vettel held over Hamilton going into the 10th round of the 20-race season.
Even more remarkably for Ferrari, Vettel’s tire trouble came immediately after teammate Kimi Raikkonen’s car experienced the same misfortune. Raikkonen still made the podium, with only Valtteri Bottas passing him to complete an unexpected Mercedes one-two after making up seven places.
“Great drive by Valtteri,” Hamilton said over the team radio after claiming victory. “Fantastic job, all weekend.”
For Hamilton, the victory after failing to make the podium in his last two races will vindicate the decision to embark on a two-day holiday to Greece after last weekend’s Austrian GP. The jaunt annoyed racing fans in London NASCAR Monster Energy Cup-Overton’s 301 Results
Sunday At New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Loudon, N.H. Lap length: 1.058 miles (Start position in parentheses) 1. (8) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 301 laps, 0 rating, 51 points. 2. (39) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 45. 3. (1) Martin Truex Jr, Toyota, 301, 0, 49. 4. (3) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 301, 0, 46. 5. (12) Kevin Harvick, Ford, 301, 0, 40. 6. (14) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 301, 0, 31. 7. (19) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 301, 0, 31. 8. (9) Kurt Busch, Ford, 301, 0, 36. 9. (10) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 301, 0, 28. 10. (2) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 33. 11. (11) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 27. 12. (7) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 301, 0, 41. 13. (30) Danica Patrick, Ford, 301, 0, 24. 14. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Ford, 301, 0, 23. 15. (26) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 22. 16. (25) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 21. 17. (4) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 27. 18. (18) Dale Earnhardt Jr, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 19. 19. (15) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 301, 0, 24. 20. (27) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 301, 0, 17. 21. (23) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 16. 22. (29) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 301, 0, 15. 23. (28) Landon Cassill, Ford, 301, 0, 14. 24. (21) Aric Almirola, Ford, 301, 0, 13. 25. (22) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 300, 0, 12. 26. (20) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 300, 0, 11. 27. (24) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 300, 0, 14. 28. (5) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 300, 0, 14. 29. (32) David Ragan, Ford, 300, 0, 8. 30. (16) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 299, 0, 7. 31. (31) Corey Lajoie, Toyota, 298, 0, 6. 32. (36) Ryan Sieg, Toyota, 298, 0, 0. 33. (37) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 297, 0, 4. 34. (35) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, 296, 0, 3. 35. (34) Gray Gaulding, Chevrolet, 295, 0, 2. 36. (38) Josh Bilicki, Chevrolet, 290, 0, 0. 37. (13) Joey Logano, Ford, 269, 0, 1. 38. (33) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, engine, 66, 0, 1. 39. (6) Erik Jones, Toyota, accident, 40, 0, 1.
Race Statistics Average Speed of Race Winner: 105.802 mph. Time of Race: 3 hours, 0 minutes, 36 seconds. Margin of Victory: 0.509 seconds. Caution Flags: 7 for 34 laps. Lead Changes: 11 among 6 drivers. Lap Leaders: M.Truex 1-78; Ky.Busch 79-153; D.Hamlin 154-173; M.Truex 174-217; Ky.Busch 218-237; K.Larson 238; D.Earnhardt 239245; M.Truex 246-260; M.Kenseth 261-263; D.Earnhardt 264-266; M.Kenseth 267; D.Hamlin 268-301
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led, Laps Led): M.Truex, 3 times for 134 laps; Ky.Busch, 2 times for 93 laps; D.Hamlin, 2 times for 52 laps; D.Earnhardt, 2 times for 8 laps; M.Kenseth, 2 times for 2 laps; K.Larson, 1 time for 0 laps.
Wins: J.Johnson, 3; M.Truex, 3; B.Keselowski, 2; K.Larson, 2; R.Stenhouse, 2; R.Blaney, 1; Ku.Busch, 1; A.Dillon, 1; D.Hamlin, 1; K.Harvick, 1; J.Logano, 1; R.Newman, 1.
Top 16 in Points: 1. M.Truex, 758; 2. K.Larson, 720; 3. Ky.Busch, 650; 4. K.Harvick, 639; 5. D.Hamlin, 589; 6. C.Elliott, 587; 7. J.McMurray, 572; 8. B.Keselowski, 564; 9. J.Johnson, 552; 10. C.Bowyer, 526; 11. M.Kenseth, 524; 12. R.Blaney, 486; 13. J.Logano, 472; 14. Ku.Busch, 455; 15. R.Stenhouse, 441; 16. R.Newman, 428.
NASCAR Driver Rating Formula A maximum of 150 points can be attained in a race. The formula combines the following categories: Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. who jeered Hamilton’s name at the showcase of the sport that was attended by the other 19 drivers.
“There is no reason to question my preparations,” Hamilton said. “My performance is second to none.”
Jim Clark and Alain Prost also won the British GP five times.
— Wire services