Now, this is the kind of brutal, race-altering heartbreak that can define a championship run. With under 100 laps to go in Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Chase race at Phoenix Raceway, Denny Hamlin suffered a right-rear tire failure while running inside the top five in the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing machine. Hamlin had to dive into the pit lane for a fresh set of rubber, but the damage was already done as he slipped a lap down before a Cody Ware caution flew on Lap 223.
Here is where it truly unraveled for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver. Hamlin looked set to claim the free pass as the first car a lap down, but disaster struck again when he was caught speeding on pit entry while limping the No. 11 to pit road. That single mistake ruled him entirely out of getting his lap back.
When the race went green again on Lap 230, Hamlin was forced to take the restart a lap down all the way back in 31st position.
That afternoon at Phoenix Raceway now makes cutting into the championship lead an uphill battle. Kyle Larson, piloting the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, also failed to score points in the first two stages of the Chase race presented by Mobil 1, but Hamlin entered this seventh round of The Chase presented by Mobil 1 sitting 49 points behind the points leader.
