Denny Hamlin captures the Dixie Vodka 400 at South Beach and etches his name as the 20th driver in Cup Series history to reach 40 Cup career wins.
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – June 14, 2020
The NASCAR Cup Series cruised to the South Beaches of the Sunshine State on Sunday afternoon for the Dixie Vodka 400 hosted by Homestead-Miami Speedway
Sunday’s race was the first that featured fans in the stands since the NASCAR Cup season schedule was delayed for the COVID-19 pandemic.
NASCAR opened the gates for race spectators for 1,000 fans, most of whom were military members from the nearby Homestead Air Reserve Base and U.S. Southern Command in Doral.
As Qualifying and Practice were dismissed, teams would random draw for Dixie Vodka 500 starting grid position. Denny Hamlin drafted the pole position and set the field to green.
Dixie Vodka 400 – Stage 1
Weather interposed upon the track after 5 laps recorded were completed. Teams were called to evacuate cars until the storm passed. Ligtning would follow later in event additionally placing teams into a 30 minute (red flag) interval until the weather pocket located 10 miles from the track.
Hendrick Driver No-9 – Chase Elliott and Penske Racing No. 12 – Ryan Blaney battled and interchanged lead in the early circuit of Stage 1.
No. 22 – Joey Logano’s Penske Ford also exhibited a car of contention only to be erupted by an alteration on pit row with Star-Com Racing No. 00 – Quin Houff.
Denny Hamlin would own Stage 1 and clearly displayed to be an early contender to recon with for the event trophy.
Dixie Vodka 400 – Stage 1 Results:
- Denny Hamlin
- Ryan Blaney
- Tyler Reddick
- Chase Elliott
- Aric Almirola
- Brad Keselowski
- Alex Bowman
- William Byron
- Clint Bowyer
- Chris Buescher
Ryan Blaney along with Chase Elliott alternated the point while battling for position early in Stage 2.
Mid-point Green-Flag pit service was utilized by the front runners to split the Stage 2 in half allowing teams to be in contention for the Stage win.
Denny Hamlin would additionally pit during Green-Flag Pit Stop. As pit sequence rotated Denny Hamlin was shuffled back to the front only to dominate the final Stage 2 laps.
Dixie Vodka 400 – Stage 2 Results:
- Denny Hamlin
- Tyler Reddick
- Chase Elliott
- Ryan Blaney
- William Byron
- Alex Bowman
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Austin Dillion
- Kyle Busch
- Aric Almirola
Dixie Vodka 400 – Stage 1
Chase Elliott’s strategy to take an early Green Flag pit Service mid-point on the Final Stage would be beneficial at the time. Most of the field would pit a lap after Chase Elliot. Teams with better tires eventually overtake the No.9 Camaro advantage through off-set pit circulation.
With 29 Laps remaining Denny Hamlin would prevail as the lap leader, passing early race contender No. 22 Joey Logano while watching Chase Elliott fade in rear view mirror,
Hendrick’s No.8 Rookie Driver –Tyler Reddick who won the NASCAR Xfinity in 2019 checked off a 4th place finish. Flordia’s very own No. 10 – Aric Almirola finishes a season best top 5 position.
Denny Hamlin’s performance will be noted as the first Driver to sweep all Stages wins at a 2020 NASCAR Cup Series scheduled event.
Dixie Vodka 400 Final Stage Results
| 1. Denny Hamlin 2. Chase Elliott 3. Ryan Blaney 4. Tyler Reddick 5. Aric Almirola 6. Kyle Busch 7. Austin Dillon 8. Christopher Bell 9. William Byron 10. Brad Keselowski 11. Clint Bowyer 12. Martin Truex Jr. 13. Bubba Wallace 14. Matt DiBenedetto 15. Michael McDowell 16. Jimmie Johnson 17. Kurt Busch 18. Alex Bowman 19. John Hunter Nemechek 20. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 21. Erik Jones 22.) Cole Custer 23.) Chris Buescher 24.) Ryan Preece 25.) Matt Kenseth 26.) Kevin Harvick 27.) Joey Logano 28.) Ty Dillon 29.) Corey LaJoie 30.) Ryan Newman 31.) Daniel Suarez 32.) Brennan Poole 33.) Quin Houff 34.) Timmy Hill 35.) BJ McLeod 36.) Joey Gase 37.) Josh Bilicki 38.) JJ Yeley |
No. 4 Stuart-Haas Driver – Kevin Harvick’s 26th finishing position still remains on top of the NASCAR Cup Series Championship point board, standing a mere 8 points over Chase Elliott who occupies 2nd. The NASCAR Cup Series moves to Talladega Alabama, Sunday June 21st for the Geico 500 (3:00 p.m. ET on Fox, MRN and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio)