Hamlin manages fuel to perfection and wins in Michigan

 Denny Hamlin won his third race of the season at Michigan International Speedway after 200 laps where fuel management decided the outcome. The 44-year-old driver crossed the finish line with a 1.099-second lead over Chris Buescher, while William Byron ran out of fuel on the final lap.

Photo By Nascar Media

Byron led 98 laps but couldn't finish

The championship leader William Byron commanded most of the race at the front in his Hendrick Motorsports #24. His Chevrolet set the pace for 98 of the 200 total laps, but fuel calculations forced him to pit on the final lap.

"Maybe we didn't have the same fuel mileage as the drivers further back at the start of that stint," explained Byron after his 28th place finish. "It's the nature of being closer to the front and burning more fuel. There's not much you can do about it."

Hocevar lost his chance due to a flat tire

Carson Hocevar, a local Michigan driver seeking his first Cup Series win, led 32 laps in his Spire Motorsports #77. The young racer had to surrender the lead with 19 laps to go due to a flat tire, finishing in 29th position.

Hamlin climbed from 11th place

The key for Hamlin was his comeback from 11th position in the last 20 laps. The Joe Gibbs Racing veteran reached fifth place before pressuring Byron in the decisive laps.

"I wanted to take the lead and obviously he was doing a great job defending," commented Hamlin. "The whole team stepped up. We've been fast all year, we just hadn't been able to finish it for one reason or another."

Photo By Nascar Media

Wallace scores points for 23XI Racing

Bubba Wallace took his Toyota #23 from 23XI Racing to fourth place, the team co-owned by Hamlin along with Michael Jordan. This result helps the team in their path to the Cup Series playoffs.

Three RFK cars in the top 10

Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing made history by placing all three of its cars in the top ten. Ryan Preece finished ninth, Brad Keselowski tenth, joining Chris Buescher in second place.

Early crash took out Bowman and Custer

A multi-car collision in the early laps involved Alex Bowman and Cole Custer, causing a 12-minute red flag. Bowman hit the wall hard after being touched by Custer's spinning Ford. For Bowman, this marks his seventh race out of the last nine finishing 25th or worse.

Mexico will be the next stop

The NASCAR Cup Series will travel to Mexico for the first time to compete in the Viva Mexico 250 at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. The race will be held next Sunday and will be broadcast by Amazon Prime.

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