Denny Hamlin survives Talladega better

Unlike Atlanta last month, Hamlin’s strategy of racing at the back till the end of a superspeedway-style race yielded better results at Talladega Superspeedway Sunday.

With five laps to go in the scheduled distance of the YellaWood 500, it appeared Denny Hamlin, running 34th with a damaged racecar from a last-lap Stage 2 crash, was going to finish with a -17 points deficit leaving Talladega Superspeedway.

“I didn’t have the speed after that wreck I needed to contend,” Hamlin said.

Then, the 23-car crash that took out multiple NASCAR Cup Series playoff drivers placed Hamlin inside the Top-10 heading into overtime, and above the cutline.

Hamlin ultimately finished the YellaWood 500 in 10th, his third consecutive Top-10 finish, whereas Hamlin finished 24th at Atlanta and no stage points.

Now, Hamlin will head into the cutoff Charlotte Road Course race next weekend with a 30-point cushion.

“If you would’ve asked me about a top-10 before (the race), I would’ve taken it just because of how this round is,” Hamlin said. “But, either way, we need to go to the ROVAL and have a solid effort.”

If Hamlin can avoid elimination after the Charlotte race, it will mark the sixth consecutive instance of the Joe Gibbs Racing driver qualifying for the Round of 8 as a championship contender.

The Charlotte race is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 13.