Denny Hamlin laments losing Bristol playoff race to Kyle Larson despite having a “solid car”
Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin shared his verdict on losing the playoff race Kyle Larson, while he is in a tough spot.
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Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson (Via IMAGO)
Coming into the NASCAR Cup playoff cutoff race at Bristol, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin was six points below the cutline and needed consistent top-5 finishes in all stages if not a win to progress to the next-round. He did exactly that and was able to amass a seven points advantage enough to earn him a spot in the next-round.
Despite securing the premotion, Denny Hamlin is unhappy as he came into the race determined to win it. But the veteran admitted that Kyle Larson was too good in the No:5 car and he had no option but to settle for P4, behind Chase Elliott at P2 and Bubba Wallace at P3. He admitted that he got loose at the end with the solid car and settled for a top 5.
My aspirations were to win it – but it looked like (Kyle Larson) was better than all of us. Solid car. I thought we were really good towards the middle of the stages, and then at the end, got too loose and couldn’t hang onto what we had.Denny Hamlin said via NBC.
The No:11 Toyota Camry driver is happy with the fact that at least he was able to score a top-5 finish and earn some good stage points. He is hoping that the impressive performance gives him good momentum going into the next-round.
Overall, top-five day, good stage points – kind of in the mix, just not really as good as we’ve been here the last few times, but overall I want to thank this whole FedEx Toyota team for giving me something I can move on with.Denny Hamlin added.
Kyle Larson had a great HMS Chevy at Bristol
One of the reason Kyle Larson dominated and secured the win at Bristol was the car he got. HMS fielded a strong Chevy for the driver and executed to perfection in the pits as well. Larson admitted it is the reason for his success and having a strong weekend.
I’ve had a lot of good cars since I’ve come to Hendrick Motorsports. It’s tough to say. But man, that was just great execution all weekend by the team. Practiced good. You’ve got to qualify good; we did that. Yeah, just had a great car. Thanks to the whole 5 team. They’re the best in the business.Kyle Larson said.
The win gives Larson a huge momentum going into the next-round and his whole championship chase. It will be interesting to see how the 2021 Cup champion approach and will perform in the upcoming races.
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Justin P Joy
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