When Denny Hamlin won the Daytona 500 in 2016 the rest of his year was pretty much unforgettable. But it’s been quite different this season since Hamlin won “The Great American Race.”
Rather than experiment and “try things” as the old points and playoff system allowed once a driver won a race, Hamlin has been a constant presence at the front of the field in all seven races of 2019. Hamlin and Chris Gabehart vowed after winning Daytona this year they would be out looking to add as many victories as possible up to the playoffs. Sunday in Texas they put one more on the board.
Hamlin’s trip to Victory Lane wasn’t easy having to rebound from two pit road penalties for speeding and an uncontrolled tire. But once he worked his way back, ironically it was a great last stop by his crew that got Hamlin the lead and ultimately win number two.
It was in many ways a typical Texas race as the long 500-mile grinds on the 1.5-mile track tend to be. But there was definitely an impact from the full new Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series rules package that combined with strategies and other variables made the day unpredictable.
Picking Hamlin to win might not have been predictable either given his recent Texas outings. But after his performance, betting against him may not be prudent either.
- There was almost as much attention on pit road in Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 as on the race track. One driver after another had challenges coming into or leaving pit road including Brad Keselowski, Hamlin, William Byron and Kevin Harvick. One trend of the new rules package that is becoming more evident with each passing race is the importance of track position. Losing spots or getting penalized on pit road makes it even more difficult to gain back those positions. Minimizing mistakes in the pits has always been a key but has added importance in 2019.
- Perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel for Jimmie Johnson. The seven-time champion showed speed all weekend long starting in practice and then in qualifying with his pole run. Sunday Johnson brought home a top-five finish to back up those performances. Johnson was understandably pleased with the run and there is a sense of optimism around the 48 team that hasn’t existed in a great while.
- Let’s not waste my time writing it or yours reading it trying to assign blame to Friday’s qualifying debacle. The bottom line is just fix it. There cannot be another sessions like the one that happened at Texas, which was just as much as a problem as what happened at Auto Club Speedway when the 12 drivers in the final round failed to put an official qualifying lap on the board. NASCAR, the drivers and teams have to find a way to once and for all put back together what was once one of the most simple elements of a racing weekend that has morphed into what Clint Bowyer correctly called an “epic failure” in Texas.
- One by product of qualifying is a different look to the starting line-up. Like Auto Club Speedway, Sunday’s Texas race had drivers take the green flag at the front of the field that have not been regulars in those positions of late. At least in qualifying, Chevrolet has benefitted from the new rules impact with seven drivers from the manufacturer’s camp starting inside the top-10 including a 1-2-3 sweep of the top spots by Hendrick Motorsports.
The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Motor Racing Network.
