On lap 303, Truex retook the lead, but Hamlin took the top spot for good when he got off pit road first during the 10th caution of the race that came out with just under 80 laps remaining.
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The Chesterfield native indicated he would’ve liked to have made a late pit stop as the race was extended from a scheduled 400 laps to 407 by the track-record 16 cautions. With qualifying coming up next, Hamlin and his team were able to find the speed to win the pole in qualifying.
Though Hamlin edged Kyle Larson by.010 seconds to earn his first Coors Light Pole Award of 2016, his third at Richmond and the 24th of his career, the real drama of Friday afternoon involved drivers who qualified deeper in the field. “I see all the extra Denny Hamlin shirts and hats and everything, and (it) fires me up every time I get here”.
Stewart’s wreck took out enough cars that rookie Chris Buescher punched his ticket to the Chase, capping off one of the season’s biggest underdog stories.
Chip Gnassi Racing’s Jamie McMurray grabbed the last available spot for the Chase.
“There’s a lot on the line at this point of the season”, defending champion Kyle Busch said. Kasey Kahne has also won there.
With 37 laps left, the red flag came out after Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman stated a multi-car accident going into Turn 3.
His hopes of making the Chase were a longshot, at best, but the rookie driver never got a chance to challenge for anything when a cut tire sent him into the wall and out of contention early.
Other notable is Saturday night’s field include Jeff Gordon (11th), who is filling in for the injured Dale Earnhardt Jr., April Richmond race victor Carl Edwards (13th), Ryan Newman (15th), Kevin Harvick (19th), Chris Buescher (31sT) and Chase Elliott (34th).
“He’s got issues, and we all know he’s got issues”, said Newman, who drove at SHR for six seasons before leaving for Richard Childress Racing in 2013.
“I guess he thought he was in a sprint vehicle again and didn’t know how to control his anger”, Newman said. “We can’t go out and just try to run every lap and stay out of everyone’s way”. We were already on a roll, it seems, over the last two months and this just caps it off. “It’s just disappointing that you’ve got somebody old like that’s retiring-should be retired the way he drives-it’s just ridiculous”.
Stewart had a different perspective.
I’m not going to take stress into the Chase.
“I’m already coming down, so it’s not like I was trying to squeeze him in the infield or something”. “I knew we had a good shot at it”. I don’t do that to him. “Three times? That’s two more times than I normally let somebody run into me”.
Hot with anger, Newman held nothing back in showing his frustration with past team owner Stewart. “He’ll get his wish”. Any time you can win going into the Chase, it really gives you a huge momentum boost. Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch, Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Truex, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Joey Logano, Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson, Tony Stewart and Chris Buescher make it in with wins, while Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon and Jamie McMurray round out the Field of 16 on points.
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Denny Hamlin celebrates in Victory Lane. But the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Camry fell short, finishing third behind victor Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson.
