Denny Hamlin steals victory from Joe Gibbs Racing teammates at Nashville

Denny Hamlin walked away with the glory at Nashville Superspeedway, but the real story was the internal heartbreak at Joe Gibbs Racing. Following a long, four-hour Cracker Barrel 400 that came down to a four-lap sprint, Hamlin managed to outsmart his teammates Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe to grab his second victory of the 2026 season.

Bell looked to have the race in his hands, but an aggressive line into Turn 1 on the final lap proved to be his undoing. Hamlin, having anticipated the move, played it cool by rolling the bottom, catching Bell off guard to secure the win. Bell was visibly gutted, refusing to blame anyone but himself for a second consecutive runner-up finish. For a driver who felt his car was perfect, it was a bitter pill to swallow.

Chase Briscoe, meanwhile, was left wondering what could have been. Sitting in the middle of the teammates’ three-wide battle at the flag, he saw an opening but simply couldn't manufacture the run needed to steal the win. Despite feeling his car was untouchable during a 14-lap stint in Stage 2, Briscoe had to settle for third. He admitted this was the most frustrating near-miss of his career, even as he and Bell both climbed one spot in the regular-season standings.