Denny Hamlin wins in total team effort at Dover
DOVER, Del. — Denny Hamlin earned his third win of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series with a total team effort in the Wurth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway.
Hamlin led twice for 136 laps. He took the lead for the first time on lap 254 when his team reeled off a quick pit stop and then squeezed Alex Bowman out of the way to edge Kyle Larson off pit road.
Hamlin drove away, pulling out to a 4-second lead. Larson reeled him in, getting the lead down to just under a half-a-second when they pitted on lap 318.
Larson took the lead back on pit road but a caution on lap 322 — during the green-flag pit stop cycle — meant Hamlin had another shot at Larson.
Kyle Larson led on lap 328 when the race restarted. Right before a three-car wreck broke out on the backstretch, Hamlin took the lead.
Hamlin controlled the race when the race went back green on lap 339. Larson didn’t give up, cutting the gap to under three tenths of a second with under 10 laps to go.
Hamlin took Larson to task, aeroblocking Larson and stopping his momentum. It paid off as Hamlin held on and earned his 54th career win and third of 2024.
“The pit crew did a phenomenal job. They’re part of the reason why I expect to win every single week, is that I know I’ve got one of the best pit crews, one of the best teams, best engineers and crew chief. There’s no reason I shouldn’t expect to win. As long as I do my job, we’re going to be part of the conversation,” Hamlin said. “It’s a fun time. This is certainly more of a team sport than it’s ever been.”
TOP-10 FINISHERS: Hamlin, Larson, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Noah Gragson, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, Daniel Hemric, Ty Gibbs
STAGE ONE
Ryan Blaney took the lead after Kyle Busch led 33 laps. 39 laps after Todd Gilliland spun on the frontstretch and lost multiple laps getting a tow for having flat tires, William Byron took the lead from Blaney on lap 79.
Meanwhile, Ryan Preece went up in smoke. Rubber built up in the rockerbox and caused smoke to fill the cockpit so badly that Preece had to pit. He came back a few laps later and went to the garage. The team deemed the issue terminal, putting Preece out after 66 laps.
Up front, William Byron led 36 laps. He had Tyler Reddick and Martin Truex Jr. closing. Truex snatched second from Reddick and the lead from Byron on lap 115 with five laps to go in the stage.
Brad Keselowski wrecked in turn two with a flat tire, ending the stage under yellow.
TOP-10 (LAP 120): Martin Truex Jr., William Byron, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Alex Bowman, Chase Elliott, Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
STAGE TWO
Martin Truex Jr. commanded the race when stage two started. He pitted on lap 184, just a lap after Kyle Larson did. That was enough for Larson to take control of the race, grabbing the lead after Corey LaJoie stayed out and had it for 33 laps.
Truex, however, burned up his right-front tire trying to get Larson. He lost second to Alex Bowman and then third to Denny Hamlin.
Bowman was on rails and challenged Larson for the lead. Larson aero-blocked Bowman, which frustrated him.
“He’s f-cking whining about a teammate [Kyle Larson] racing him for the win. Like, shut the f-ck up and go get him,” spotter Kevin Hamlin told the team on a private radio channel Bowman couldn’t hear.
Tensions aside, Bowman held on to second in stage two.
TOP-10 (LAP 250): Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Bubba Wallace
STAGE THREE
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ran inside the top-10 all day until a crash on lap 322 took him out of the race. Eight laps later, Zane Smith got tight and spun Bubba Wallace, triggering a wreck also involving Christopher Bell and William Byron.
Wallace, Bell and Byron all ended the race in the garage with Preece and Michael McDowell. McDowell fell out of the race with a hub issues after lap 285.
WURTH 400 RESULTS AND POINTS STANDINGS
NEXT: AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway (3 p.m. ET, May 5; FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio; Denny Hamlin won last year)
Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com