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Denny Hamlin stretches fuel to win NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan

JHby: Jonathan Howard06/08/25Jondean25
Denny Hamlin NASCAR Michigan win
Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

Third win of the season and third win all-time at Michigan! Denny Hamlin stretched his fuel just enough to get the job done. Over 700 starts, and Hamlin is still winning NASCAR Cup Series races. What a race.

Michigan gave us everything that we could ask for. Denny Hamlin showed us that he is still a championship contender and capable of winning races at 44 years old. Soon, he gets to welcome a baby boy into the world.

Twice this year, Hamlin ran short on fuel, and it cost him a win. Today, he was the one who stretched it just enough to take down William Byron, Chris Buescher, Carson Hocevar, Kyle Larson, and the rest of the field.

In fact, he decided to bring out his signature catchphrase. Apologizing to his dad, who said he had to stop saying it, Denny Hamlin smiled and said, “Daddy, I’m sorry, but I beat your favorite driver, folks.” When asked which one? “All of them.”

After getting the win over the field, including hometown hero Carson Hocevar, Hamlin had to let everyone know that he took out their favorite driver. This time, for real. Of course, he didn’t stop there, he taunted the Michigan crowd by spelling out “O-H-I-O” with his arms.

This race was intense at the end. No one knew who had enough fuel to make it to the finish line. There were drivers that had to back off and settle for a good finish instead of fighting for the win. That is the hardest decision for a driver to make.

Denny Hamlin only led five laps today on his way to the win. William Byron once again has a strong, almost dominant win, leading 98 laps, 66 laps more than any other driver. He comes up short again after having to pit with only a few laps to go. Byron finished P28.

This race showed just how exciting the Cup Series can be. There were a ton of storylines that played out. Carson Hocevar was running up front at his hometown track just one week after the Nashville controversy. William Byron let another race get away after Darlington and Charlotte.

Then there is Denny Hamlin. He has been waiting for the birth of his first son, his third kid. I’m sure he’s happy that Jordan and the baby held on to allow him to race todya and get the win.

Hamlin is now the winningest driver all-time at Joe Gibbs Racing. He passed Kyle Bush for that honor and has 57 career wins to his name. What a race, what a performance from Hamlin.

Other notable performances: Chris Buescher in P2, Ty Gibbs P3, Zane Smith P7, Kyle Busch P8, Ryan Preece and Brad Keselowski P9 and P10. Great day for RFK Racing with three top-10 finishes. Shane van Gisbergen earned himself a P18 finish, one of his better oval races of the season.

Big win for Denny Hamlin. He cut into the points lead that William Byron and Kyle Larson have over him. The regular season is still Byron’s to lose right now. However, a few more performances like this from Hamlin and that could change before the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.