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Ryan Blaney overcomes pit road miscue to win NASCAR Cup race at New Hampshire
Blaney led the final 74 laps to capture his 20th career Cup Series victory, while Denny Hamlin clinched the playoff top seed.
The short version
- Ryan Blaney recovered from a lost lug nut during a pit stop to win his second consecutive race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
- Denny Hamlin finished seventh, securing the top seed for the upcoming postseason Chase.
- Ross Chastain was eliminated from playoff contention after an early mechanical failure relegated him to a last-place finish.
- The NASCAR Cup Series regular season will conclude at Daytona International Speedway on August 29 to set the 16-driver postseason field.
Key facts
- Ryan Blaney led a race-high 115 of 301 laps and held off Bubba Wallace by 0.586 seconds to earn his third win of the season and 20th of his career.[Associated Press]
- Blaney dropped to 17th after a lug nut came off his left-front tire with 111 laps left, but regained the lead following a two-tire pit stop during a lap-226 caution.[Associated Press]
- Josh Berry finished in third place, followed by Christopher Bell in fourth and Kyle Larson in fifth.[Associated Press]
- Denny Hamlin finished seventh after recovering from his own pit road setback, clinching the top seed for the Chase.[Associated Press]
- Ross Chastain exited after 40 laps due to mechanical issues, finishing last and ending his chances of qualifying for the Chase.[Associated Press]
What remains uncertain
- The final driver to secure the 16th and final Chase playoff spot remains undecided, with Ryan Preece trailing Shane van Gisbergen heading into the regular-season finale.[Associated Press]