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Autosport
Autosport
Jim Utter

NASCAR Cup Charlotte: Hamlin wins hectic Coca-Cola 600

Hamlin started on the pole but struggled to stay in contention for the win for most of the race and was even collected in a 13-car accident near the end of Stage 2.

But as the caution-filled race wound to a close, the field went four-wide off Turn 4 on the first lap of the first overtime, and Hamlin scooted by with the lead as a seven-car wreck erupted behind him.

Hamlin led entering the second overtime stint after the earlier crash, but his Joe Gibbs Racing team-mate Kyle Busch briefly grabbed the lead, only to get loose to allow Hamlin to reclaim the advantage on the final lap.

Hamlin held off Kyle Busch by 0.119 seconds to claim victory and his first-ever triumph at Charlotte.
The win is the 48th of Hamlin’s NASCAR Cup career and second this season.

Hamlin also now holds the record for winning the longest race in NASCAR history in distance – 413 laps or 619.5 miles.

“It’s so special. It’s the last big one that’s not on my résumé. It means so much,” Hamlin said. “Man, just can't thank this whole team enough. Never won the Coke 600 before. This means a lot.

“Man, we weren’t very good all day. Just got ourselves in the right place at the right time. What a battle there.”

Race winner Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, FedEx Ground Toyota Camry (Photo by: Matthew T. Thacker / NKP / Motorsport Images)

With Kyle Busch having to settle for the runner-up spot, still his best result since winning on dirt in Bristol back in April, Kevin Harvick ended up third ahead of Chase Briscoe in fourth.

Christopher Bell held on to fifth place to match his result from Kansas, leading Tyler Reddick and Ricky Stenhouse Jr to the finish.

Michael McDowell secured a strong eighth place in front of reigning NASCAR Cup champion Kyle Larson, who had led for large parts of Stage 4 only to fade in overtime, with Alex Bowman rounding out the top 10 on a hectic night at Charlotte.

The race was red flagged on lap 346, when Daniel Suarez failed to clear Briscoe and the two made contact which sent Suarez spinning into traffic. Chris Buescher was hit by Suarez and then again by Todd Gilliland, and that hit sent Buescher’s car into the infield turf.

A broken piece of Buescher’s Ford got caught in the turf and sent his car barrel-rolling down the front stretch before ending up on its roof, triggering the red flag, with safety personnel getting the car turned on its side before Buescher was able to get out of the car under his own power.

NASCAR Cup Charlotte - Coca-Cola 600 race results

Cla Driver Manufacturer Laps Time Gap Interval Retirement
1 United States Denny Hamlin Toyota 413 5:13'06.732      
2 United States Kyle Busch Toyota 413 5:13'06.851 0.119 0.119  
3 United States Kevin Harvick Ford 413 5:13'07.397 0.665 0.546  
4 United States Chase Briscoe Ford 413 5:13'07.517 0.785 0.120  
5 United States Christopher Bell Toyota 413 5:13'07.949 1.217 0.432  
6 United States Tyler Reddick Chevrolet 413 5:13'08.259 1.527 0.310  
7 United States Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Chevrolet 413 5:13'08.304 1.572 0.045  
8 United States Michael McDowell Ford 413 5:13'08.333 1.601 0.029  
9 United States Kyle Larson Chevrolet 413 5:13'08.427 1.695 0.094  
10 United States Alex Bowman Chevrolet 413 5:13'08.459 1.727 0.032  
11 United States Harrison Burton Ford 413 5:13'08.947 2.215 0.488  
12 United States Martin Truex Jr. Toyota 413 5:13'09.034 2.302 0.087  
13 United States Ty Dillon Chevrolet 413 5:13'09.433 2.701 0.399  
14 United States Erik Jones Chevrolet 413 5:13'09.997 3.265 0.564  
15 United States Ross Chastain Chevrolet 413 5:13'13.082 6.350 3.085  
16 United States Todd Gilliland Ford 413 5:13'13.908 7.176 0.826  
17 United States Aric Almirola Ford 412 5:13'13.774 1 Lap 1 Lap  
18 United States Cody Ware Ford 412 5:13'16.550 1 Lap 2.776  
19 United States B.J. McLeod Ford 407 5:13'19.074 6 Laps 5 Laps  
20 United States Joey Logano Ford 405 5:01'45.203 8 Laps 2 Laps Accident
21 United States Cole Custer Ford 405 5:01'45.247 8 Laps 0.044 Accident
22 United States Austin Dillon Chevrolet 405 5:01'46.549 8 Laps 1.302 Accident
23 United States Kaz Grala Chevrolet 400 5:13'15.590 13 Laps 5 Laps  
24 United States Noah Gragson Chevrolet 386 4:47'25.501 27 Laps 14 Laps Throttle
25 Mexico Daniel Suarez Chevrolet 346 4:18'36.569 67 Laps 40 Laps Accident
26 United States Chris Buescher Ford 346 4:18'36.992 67 Laps 0.423 Accident
27 United States Justin Haley Chevrolet 343 4:15'09.321 70 Laps 3 Laps Engine
28 United States Bubba Wallace Toyota 200 2:33'58.566 213 Laps 143 Laps DVP
29 United States Ryan Blaney Ford 195 2:31'34.379 218 Laps 5 Laps Accident
30 United States Brad Keselowski Ford 193 2:28'43.761 220 Laps 2 Laps Accident
31 United States Kurt Busch Toyota 191 2:22'42.849 222 Laps 2 Laps Accident
32 United States William Byron Chevrolet 191 2:22'42.941 222 Laps 0.092 Accident
33 United States Chase Elliott Chevrolet 188 2:18'03.117 225 Laps 3 Laps DVP
34 United States Austin Cindric Ford 145 1:45'58.499 268 Laps 43 Laps Accident
35 United States Corey Lajoie Chevrolet 60 45'02.089 353 Laps 85 Laps Accident
36 United States Josh Bilicki Chevrolet 31 20'31.578 382 Laps 29 Laps Accident
37 United States Ryan Preece Ford 16 8'25.493 397 Laps 15 Laps DVP

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