Denny Hamlin won Sunday night’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Nashville Superspeedway in thrilling fashion. The driver of the No. 11 fended off Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe to take the checkered flag in the Cracker Barrel 400.
Bell finished second, followed by Briscoe in third, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in fourth, and Chase Elliott rounded out the top five.
It was Hamlin’s second win of the 2026 season, 62nd career victory, and first triumph at Nashville.
Hamlin overcame early penalty, teammate battle to win at Nashville
Hamlin started on the pole and led the field to the green flag in Sunday’s race after the start of the event was delayed over an hour due to rain.
However, the JGR driver jumped the start of the race and was forced to serve a pass-through penalty.
Despite the setback, the 45-year-old worked his way back through the field and was th leader by the time stage three began.
With four laps to go, Hamlin lined up third on a restart, with Bell the leader and Briscoe second. Hamlin worked his way underneath Bell, leading to a side-by-side battle that ultimately brought Briscoe into the fight for the lead.
The teammates were three wide heading into turn one on the final lap. As Bell shot his way to the point through the corner, Hamlin powered underneath the driver of the No. 20 and cleared him by the time they exited turn two.
In his post-race interview with Prime, Hamlin reflected on a topsy-turvy night in Music City.
“He (Bell) drove in so deep on that last lap into (turn) one, it just allowed me to barely clear off of (turn) two. Man, what an unbelievable day. Starting first, going to last, then back to first,” Hamlin said.
To honor the late Kyle Busch, Hamlin did the celebratory bow that “Rowdy” was known for. With 62 career victories, Hamlin is one win away from tying Busch for ninth on the NASCAR Cup Series all-time wins list.
Crash-filled Nashville race plagued multiple drivers
The Cracker Barrel 400 saw 11 cautions for 77 laps.
In stage one, Trackhouse Racing drivers Connor Zilisch and Ross Chastain experienced separate brake rotor failures, which led to both posting a DNF. Meanwhile, Ryan Preece suffered a radiator issue, resulting in a second straight DNF for the RFK Racing driver.
Brad Keselowski’s race ended prematurely after contact with Austin Dillon sent him spinning on the frontstretch. The driver of the No. 6 said after the crash that it appeared to be intentional on Dillon’s part.
In the final stage, a multi-car crash involving Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher, William Byron, and Alex Bowman. All drivers involved ended the race in the garage.
At the checkered flag, Tyler Reddick and Chase Elliott collided and crashed across the finish line.
Hamlin gains ground on point leader Tyler Reddick
After 14 races, Tyler Reddick continues to lead the NASCAR Cup Series points standings. The driver of the No. 45 lost some ground on Hamlin, however, as he now leads by 97 points.
Hamlin sits in second, followed by Ryan Blaney in third (-174), Chase Elliott fourth (-197), and Ty Gibbs fifth (-208).
In regards to The Chase bubble, Preece’s DNF dropped him outside the top 16. He is now two points behind Austin Cindric, who is the last driver above the cut line.
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