KANSAS CITY, Kan. — When Denny Hamlin fulfilled his required media availability on Saturday, he emphasized how many races that the No. 11 car has dominated at Kansas Speedway in recent seasons. Yet over the last 11 races entering Sunday’s AdventHealth 400, Kyle Larson was the only driver with multiple victories.
Add another close defeat to the list for the 61-time Cup victor.
RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Kansas
Entering the second consecutive Kansas overtime race, Hamlin chose the inside line as the race leader. That put Tyler Reddick to his outside with Larson bumper-to-bumper with the No. 11 car on the inside of the second row. Hamlin knew what was coming.
At the drop of the rag, Larson dipped to the inside line, putting Hamlin vulnerable in the middle lane. Both the No. 5 car and Reddick cleared Hamlin, as he made contact with Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell down the backstretch. Reddick made a last-lap pass on Larson while Hamlin settled for fourth position.
“I think Denny is just mad and wishes he hadn’t taken the bottom and had taken the top because it’s a little different in overtime,” Chris Gayle, signal caller for the No. 11 Toyota, told NASCAR.com. “When [Larson] lines up behind you, there’s some history of [him] not pushing because it’s a two-lap shootout and nobody is going to give pushes like they would have earlier in the race because they can split and go three-wide. Maybe you at least force somebody to push you if you take the top, I think is the issue there.”
Each time the field chooses for the restart, the No. 11 team leaves the decision to Hamlin to pick which lane he prefers. The core group studies data infinitely, but knows that with a two-lap dash, those statistics can be altered.
“I have to recognize that I know [Larson] is going to do that move, and I have to make sure that if it happens, I do everything I can to let [Reddick] win,” Hamlin told reporters. “I got beat by that a few years ago and knew in my mind that the top was the place to be, but the numbers say the bottom. In these green-white-checkered scenarios, you can throw the numbers out. I will certainly learn a lesson there.
“It’s a double-edged sword. I need the push, but I know that the first opportunity, [Larson is] going to go bottom, so I need to do everything I can. If that happens, then the 45 wins, which he did.”
MORE: Race recap from Kansas | Top highlights
Prior to overtime, Hamlin and Reddick were having a fierce battle in a clean race. Gayle called Hamlin to pit road five laps prior to Reddick and Christopher Bell at Lap 216 to gain track position. With the laps winding down, Reddick got closer and took the lead with 10 circuits remaining.
Hamlin cooled the tires down and made one last push to make a late rally. The No. 45 car stumbled with three laps remaining, allowing the No. 11 car to take back the lead. Cody Ware spun on the next lap, setting up the overtime finish just before Hamlin could take the white flag.
Before overtime, Hamlin felt as though he was in the catbird seat.
“Even when the 45 got around, I felt pretty confident I was going to get back around him on the last lap if I hadn’t already,” Hamlin said. “He made the mistakes coming to two to go. It allowed us to capitalize, and I knew from that point on, chaos was going to happen.”
Instead, Hamlin has led 290 laps over the last two Kansas races and has seen two possible victories slip away.
“I hate it for all of the guys,” Gayle stated. “I thought we had a great car. We were in position, and then talk about an up-and-down deal with the 45 out of fuel and then getting this caution. I guess Cody Ware spun out on the apron, and somehow, we couldn’t have made that about a lap later. It’s tough.”
Fortunately for the No. 11 team, Toyota has been the class of the field at intermediate races, and there are seven more 1.5-mile events upcoming on the schedule.