Denny Hamlin forced to reverse down pit road after disastrous pit stop at Las Vegas
Multiple issues today on pit road for Denny Hamlin and the latest one was maybe the most egregious so far in Las Vegas. The NASCAR Playoffs have been sent into chaos in Vegas.
Denny Hamlin is one of five playoff drivers with issues today. Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, and Tyler Reddick all were involved in an early wreck. Then Kyle Larson and Hamlin both had pit road issues that put them behind the ball.
With other drivers having problems, Hamlin could take advantage of today with a strong top-10 or top-5 finish. But things like this pit stop won’t make it easier.
Things could not go much worse for Denny Hamlin. He started the day without the speed necessary to keep up with the leaders. Multiple bad pit stops. The only good news is that the 11 team has found themselves back on the lead lap, but for how long?
Coming into this race, Hamlin felt that he could win. He at least saw this as a good opportunity to earn points with a solid day all around. Well, none of that is happening. Playoff drivers are having the worst luck outside of just a few and it is wreaking havoc.
While Hamlin is having issues, his teammate Christopher Bell has dominated. The 20 team is just on it. Whatever they brought to the track was exactly what they needed.
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Denny Hamlin has to find answers
Sooner rather than later, Denny Hamlin and his team have to figure things out. This was going to be the round where the Joe Gibbs Racing driver could really shine. These intermediate tracks are where he does his best work in this Next Gen car.
For one reason or another, things have not clicked. It has now been six full races and most of a seventh and still, Hamlin cannot find a rhythm. Either he has issues with speed, pit road, wrecks, or some combination of the three.
The only good news is that Hamlin has moved into the top-20 in the final stage. If he can pick off drivers, make one big change to get it going back the other way, and probably get a couple of cautions – a decent finish is possible.
Right now, Denny Hamlin might end up -15 to the cutline. He has points to make up but there aren’t a lot of clear answers in front of him at the moment.