Hamlin wins, Newman’s angry

It was yet another Denny Hamlin runaway for Joe Gibbs Racing on Saturday night in what turned out to be an anticlimactic end to NASCAR’s regular season.

The fireworks came off the track at Richmond International Raceway in Virginia, where Ryan Newman angrily chided former boss Tony

Stewart after an accident between the two officially ended Newman’s chances to make the playoffs.

The verbal beat-down from Newman came with 37 laps left, before Hamlin finished off his third career Sprint Cup win at his home track while giving JGR its third consecutive victory at the track and ninth in the last 15 races.

Newman called Stewart “bipolar,” said the retiring race car driver had anger issues, and all but outright referenced the 2014 incident in which Stewart fatally struck a sprint car driver.

Stewart, who is retiring at the end of the season, already had his spot in the Chase secure headed into Richmond.

There were three spots available in the Chase at the start of the night, but Newman was going to need a nearmiracle.

He didn’t get it, and the remaining playoff positions in the 16-driver field went to rookie Chase Elliott, Austin

Dillon and Jamie McMurray. Chris Buescher also made the Chase by virtue of his win at a rainshortened race and by maintaining a spot in the top 30 in points.