MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
Overton’s 301
New Hampshire Motor Speedway – Loudon, New Hampshire
Sunday, July 16, 2017
Race Winner: Denny Hamlin
Age: 36
Team: No. 11 – FedEx Office Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs Racing
Crew Chief: Michael Wheeler
IN THE WORDS OF THE WINNER – ““Yeah, just it’s a great feeling. I know we’ve been getting better and better as the year goes on, but definitely needed a win for the organization and for myself and just kind of get some momentum going with the playoffs are coming up, so we’ve got to get going. Really this is awesome.”
· Denny Hamlin
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· Denny Hamlin won the 25th annual Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) Overton’s 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Sunday afternoon. It is Hamlin’s 30th win in 417 career MENCS races.
· It is Hamlin’s first victory and 10th top-10 finish in 2017. It is also his third victory and 14th top-10 finish in 23 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
· With the win, Hamlin ends a 28-race winless streak in the MENCS. His last victory came at Richmond Raceway in September 2016.
· The win also snaps a 20-race winless streak for Joe Gibbs Racing in the MENCS. The last victory for the team came when Carl Edwards won the November 2016 race at Texas Motor Speedway.
· Kyle Larson (second) posted his fourth top-10 finish in seven races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his 12th top-10 and ninth top-5 finish in 2017. Each of his nine top-5 finishes have been second or better, including two wins.
· Martin Truex Jr. (third) posted his ninth top-10 finish in 23 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his seventh top-5 and 13th top-10 showing in 19 races this season.
· Mexican-native Daniel Suarez (sixth) was the highest finishing rookie.
· For 2017, NASCAR has introduced a new stage format in all three national series where each race is segmented into three stages. In addition to the points awarded at the end of a race (Final Stage), points are also awarded to the top-10 finishers of the first two stages (Stage 1 & Stage 2).
· Martin Truex Jr. won Stage 1 of Sunday’s race, while Kyle Busch captured Stage 2.
· Martin Truex Jr. (758) leads the 2017 point standings by 38 points over Kyle Larson (720). They are followed by Kyle Busch (650) and Kevin Harvick (639).
· Eleven drivers currently have qualified for the 16-driver field of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. The list consists of Kurt Busch, Brad Keselowski, Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Newman, Kyle Larson, Jimmie Johnson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Austin Dillon, Ryan Blaney, Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin, each of whom has won at least one race this season. The Playoffs culminate with the Ford EcoBoost 400 championship finale on November 19 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
· In 12 starts at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Denny Hamlin has accumulated four top-5 and eight top-10 showings, including two victories in the Ford EcoBoost 400 (2009, 2013). Hamlin competed as part of the Champion 4 drivers in the 2014 Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
NASCAR XFINITY SERIES
· Kyle Busch won the 28th Annual Overton’s 200 NASCAR XFINITY Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Saturday night. It is Busch’s 89th victory in 334 career XFINITY Series races.
· It is Busch’s third victory and sixth top-10 finish in 2017.
· It is Busch’s sixth victory and ninth top-10 finish in 12 races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
· Ryan Preece (second) posted his first top-10 finish in four races at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is his first top-10 finish in 2017.
· William Byron (third) was the highest finishing rookie. It is his 11th top-10 and sixth top-5 finish this season.
· With victories to their credit this year, William Byron (2), Justin Allgaier (1) and Ryan Reed (1) have clinched spots in the 12-driver playoff field in the 2017 NASCAR XFINITY Series Playoffs. The Playoffs culminate with the Ford EcoBoost 300 XFINITY Series championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday, November 18.
· Elliott Sadler (620) leads the XFINITY Series points standings by 45 points over rookie William Byron (575). They are followed by Justin Allgaier (530).
NASCAR CAMPING WORLD TRUCK SERIES
· The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series was off this weekend and will return July 19 at Eldora Speedway.
