Short-track racing is an art. Only a few can navigate the tight confines of tracks less than a mile. Denny Hamlin has been the gold standard of short-track racing since his rookie year in 2006. Richmond Raceway is the home track of Denny Hamlin, who grew up in Chesterfield, Virginia, just 26 miles away from Richmond. With five wins at Richmond and the defending winner from earlier this year, he will be the undoubted favorite going into the weekend.
Denny Hamlin’s Success
Denny Hamlin is one of the best short-track drivers in all of NASCAR. He has won 14 races on tracks a mile or less with 49 Top 5’s and 66 Top 10s in 107 short track races, with five of the 14 races being won at Richmond, the second most wins among active drivers. Kyle Busch. Earlier in the season, Denny Hamlin got the lead in overtime, taking the lead coming off pit road. The race went further than the scheduled distance of 400 laps. The race required an extra seven laps due to cautions late in the race.
The dominant cars in the Toyota Owners 400 were Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Larson, who led a combined 372 laps between the two. Joey Logano was able to steal second place as Larson and Truex were fighting one another, coming together after the checkered flag. Truex Jr. was undoubtedly upset at the way the race played out, having a one-second lead before the caution came out just half a lap away from taking the white flag and winning the race. Larson got loose and got into Bubba Wallace, allowing Denny Hamlin to win the race off pit road and eventually the win.