Denny Hamlin overcame a pit road speeding penalty and held off a late charge from Chase Elliott to win the Pennzoil 400 on Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, his third career victory at the track and 61st of his Cup Series career.
Hamlin led a race-high 134 laps, including the final 50 after passing teammate Christopher Bell on a restart. Elliott finished .504 seconds behind in second, followed by William Byron in third and Bell in fourth.
The win breaks a tie with Kevin Harvick for 10th on the all-time Cup Series wins list. It also comes after a turbulent offseason for the 45-year-old driver, who lost his father and saw his mother seriously injured in a house fire on his property in December. Hamlin had dedicated his October win at Las Vegas to his father.
“It’s really gratifying,” Hamlin said. “We were really strong here in the fall. It was about eight races ago that we were here. We just took what we had there and refined it and made it better. That was one of the strongest races that I’ve had as a driver in quite some time.”
Hamlin started second but was penalized for speeding on pit road during a caution in Stage 1, sending him to the rear of the field. He worked his way back to finish fifth in Stage 2.
“It was crazy because when I went to the back of the back, the car drove totally different, but I was still able to maneuver and find air when I needed it,” Hamlin said. “I knew it was crucial on that last restart with 50 to go, get the lead we got (passing) Bell. I could just take it easy, manage my tires and keep the gaps that I need to win.”
Bell won Stage 1, but Hamlin took control in the final stage. The only caution of the day came with 57 laps to go for a spin by rookie Connor Zilisch. Bell beat Hamlin off pit road on the final stops, but Hamlin powered past on the restart.
“We were able to fine-tune (what we had last fall) a little more and let’s exploit what we think was better. I was optimistic,” said crew chief Chris Gayle. “It was nice and rewarding. I got a little worried about the pit road speeding penalty because you can get trapped in somebody else’s stuff. He did a great job. He buckled down, he was going to make up for it and got through traffic pretty way.”
Hamlin celebrated on the frontstretch with his two oldest daughters, who rode with him to victory lane. “It’s great. They weren’t here for 60. To have 61, now that they’re able to enjoy it, that was the first time they got to ride in the car after the race, so it’s awesome because I want them to enjoy it like I do,” he said.
With the win, Hamlin jumped from 12th to fourth in the point standings, 78 points behind series leader Tyler Reddick, who drives for Hamlin’s 23XI Racing team. Hamlin now has three top-10 finishes this season, including a fifth-place run at Phoenix last week.
“Momentum means something in this sport, especially for me personally,” Hamlin said. “I’m just waiting on that morning that I wake up and don’t have the skill set that I had before, and things start being slower, and I start not reacting at the same rate I used to before. But not today.”
