Hamlin is a smashing success
He wins Daytona exhibition race
Daytona, Fla. — Joe Gibbs Racing opened a new season exactly where it left off last year: On top of the podium.
Denny Hamlin won the Sprint Unlimited — the kickoff to Speedweeks — on Saturday night to give JGR its third consecutive win in the exhibition race. JGR drivers have actually won the Unlimited in four of the last five years, and Hamlin has three victories since 2006.
Hamlin overcame early damage to his Toyota to score his first victory with new crew chief Mike Wheeler, who was a longtime engineer for the No. 11 team before his promotion. Wheeler gambled on fuel strategy, a luxury he had because the results of the race have no meaning, and spent most of the closing laps encouraging Hamlin to save fuel.
“I don’t know if he was poised. He was poised on the radio,” Hamlin said of the crew chief. “We’ve got such a young team, crew chief, engineers, they all look like they’re a bunch of high school kids.”
Winning this exhibition race doesn’t always translate into Daytona 500 success. The last driver to win the opening race and the 500 was Dale Jarrett in 2000.
Joey Logano, last year’s Daytona 500 winner, finished second in a Ford and was followed by Paul Menard, Kyle Larson and Casey Mears, all in Chevrolets.
“This win couldn’t be possible without my teammates,” Hamlin said. “Matt (Kenseth) sacrificed so much, pushing me at the right time. Total team effort. Just like Kyle’s championship, we win as one. This is a Joe Gibbs Racing win.”
Brian Vickers’ return to a race car lasted just 23 laps before a tire problem caused him to lose control of the car he was driving for injured driver Tony Stewart. The incident triggered a six-car accident that included Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kevin Harvick.
The race gave NASCAR its first chance to try its new overtime rule, which states the leader must cross a marker to make a race official. Hamlin hit that spot as he tried to hold off Logano and Menard, and a wreck behind the leaders eventually brought out the caution that froze the field and sealed Hamlin’s victory.
The race is a chance for teams to shake off any cobwebs from the off-season and ready for the Feb. 21 seasonopening Daytona 500. Drivers are usually anxious and wrecks are common: Only 12 of the 25 cars finished on the lead lap and 10 cars failed to finish the race.
ARCA: John Wes Townley won his second season opener on the circuit, leading 33 of the 80 laps and holding off several challengers in the first race of Speedweeks at Daytona.
William Byron was second, followed by Kyle Weatherman. Cole Custer, an 18-yearold who drove 10 races for JR Motorsports in the Trucks Series, was the youngest polesitter in series history. He led 42 laps before getting stuck in the middle of the pack.