Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson are competing for the top position in NASCAR Cup Series standings for the regular-seaason.
While Hamlin was leading for most portion of the season, Larson has caught up with him with his latest win at Watkins Glen. This was Larson’s fifth win of the season. In contrast, Hamlin is yet to register a win.
Nonetheless, a consistent performance throughout the season has helped Hamlin stay on top of the series standings. He has 15 top-10 finishes this season. The consistency has come about in road course as well. In the five road course this season, Hamlin has had four top-1o finishes.
“I’ll slam you straight in the wall” – Throwback on Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart heated collision
With just three races left in the regular-season, the battle for regular-season title between Hamlin and Larson is set to go down to the wire.
“It’s going to be a battle all the way to the end, I think,” Hamlin said. “Really proud of our effort today. We passed, had to be the most cars. We were really, really fast all day. Proud of this whole FedEx Express team. We’ve come a long way on the road courses.
“I thought we had equal pace with the 5 (Larson), especially on the long run. Obviously, we made an extra stop there for whatever reason. It’s an encouraging day when we can be as competitive as what we were.”
Hamlin will be trying hard to get the title as it will mean he will be awarded 15 playoff points, contrary to 10 for the second. Especially with his inferior win record and stage wins, the points can be crucial for the playoff stage.