RADIO
Denny Hamlin Extends his Championship Lead With Third-Place Finish
Denny Hamlin was considered one of the top favorites to win the Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, and he left the race with a third-place finish and an increased lead in the regular-season standings. Hamlin started the race from pole position and led most of his 30 total laps in the first stage, but he lost ground after being shuffled back on restarts following a few cautions and ended the stage in eighth, collecting three stage points. The No. 11 Toyota driver had his car improved during the second stage and ran as high as second, but still fell behind William Byron and Chase Briscoe for the stage win. Hamlin ended the stage in third, earning eight more stage points. In the final stage, Hamlin continued to run inside the top five through most of the stage and then ran other drivers down in the closing laps. Hamlin passed Alex Bowman and William Byron to make it to his eventual finishing position of third. After the 19th race of the season was completed, Hamlin now holds a 44-point lead over Tyler Reddick for the regular-season championship.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
