NASCAR: Hamlin wins from pole at Pocono

Denny Hamlin scored his 49th career NASCAR Cup Series win Sunday at Pocono Raceway, tying him with Tony Stewart for 12th on the all-time wins list. Hamlin is also now the winningest driver at the 2.5-mile “Tricky Triangle” track with seven career wins in Pennsylvania.

The M&M’s Fan Appreciation 400 saw a closing 13-lap green-flag stretch to the finish of the 160-lap event. The ninth and final caution came out when Hamlin’s No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota pushed Ross Chastain’s No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet out of the way to take the lead with 17 laps to go.

Chastain had to retire from the race before the checkered flag, finishing 34th of 36.

Hamlin’s teammate, Kyle Busch, led a race-high 63 laps and ended up second, 0.927 seconds behind the winner. Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott was third, followed by Tyler Reddick from Richard Childress Racing and Daniel Suárez from Trackhouse Racing. Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Michael McDowell, Martin Truex Jr. and Bubba Wallace completed the top 10.

Kyle Larson won Stage 1 on Lap 30, his third stage victory of the season. Kyle Busch won Stage 2 on Lap 95, his second stage victory this year. Hamlin, who started on the pole, was third and then fifth in the opening two stages after a pair of restart issues on Lap 1 and Lap 41.

NASCAR Xfinity Series regular Ty Gibbs made his NASCAR Cup Series debut, subbing in the No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota for Kurt Busch, who was not medically cleared to race after his involvement in a qualifying wreck. Gibbs is 19 years old. He was 31st, 29th and 18th through all three segments.

Ryan Blaney, the top points driver on the playoff bubble cutline with five races remaining until the postseason, wrecked out on Lap 138, slamming into the inside wall and totaling his No. 12 Team Penske Ford. He had come in sixth and third in Stages 1 and 2, respectively. He landed 35th on the final results sheet.

The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course next Sunday for the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard (2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, IMS Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). NASCAR Xfinity Series regular and NASCAR Cup Series part-timer AJ Allmendinger won this race last year.

Race Results