DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Make it three in a row on the road for Chase Elliott.
NASCAR’s most popular driver won the Cup Series road course race at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, holding off hard-charging Denny Hamlin following a late restart and notching his third consecutive victory away from ovals.
The 24-year-old Elliott also won on road courses at Charlotte and at Watkins Glen last year. He got a bigger challenge than many expected down the stretch in his latest roadie.
Elliott, Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. had the cars to beat. Truex’s chances took a huge hit near the end of the second segment. He was caught speeding on pit road and forced to start the last stanza at the back of the pack.
Making up that kind of ground on a 14-turn, 3.61-mile road course was a nearly impossible tough task, especially considering Elliott was turning mistake-free laps at the front of the field.
Kyle Busch had the best shot at catching Elliott, but the defending series champion had rear brake issues with 17 laps to go and was forced to the garage for a lengthy repair.
When everyone else cycled through final pit stops, Elliott had a six-second advantage over Hamlin. He pushed that to 10 with 10 laps to go.
Busch returned to the track and caused a caution that helped his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, Hamlin and Truex. Hamlin gave Elliott all he could handle on the final lap, but didn’t do anything more.
Hamlin finished second, followed Truex and Jimmie Johnson.
Another top contender, Kevin Harvick, got turned around while braking into the “international horseshoe” and never recovered. Rookie Christopher Bell hit Harvick in the rear and spun him out.
Ryan Newman finished 19th in his return to the scene of his most harrowing crash.
Newman delivered a special message to safety workers minutes before the race started. Newman spoke over his radio to the control tower, a clip that was later played during the NBC broadcast.
“Hey everyone, just want to say a big thank you,” Newman said. “This is a special day for me. I owe a lot of it because of all the things that you guys did back in February. It’s enabled me to … come back into this racetrack and do what I love.
“Thank you for your support, not only for me personally but all the things you do for all us drivers. It goes a long way, and I want to say thank you from the deepest of my heart. Thank you.”
Newman had to be cut from his No. 6 Ford after wrecking while leading the final lap of the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17. He doesn’t recall anything about his two-night hospital stay for treatment of a head injury he called a brain bruise. His first memory is walking out of a Florida hospital holding hands with his two young daughters.
Newman was one of the few Cup drivers with experience on Daytona’s road course. He won an IROC race on the course in 2004. Matt Kenseth, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer and Michael McDowell also had limited experience.
None of them, though, had driven this exact layout since NASCAR added a chicane coming off the oval’s Turn 4, a twister designed to slow speeds coming to the start-finish line and create another potential passing zone.
The Cup drivers, as expected, handled the chicane better than those in any other series. They covered the 65-lape race with few cautions.
Heat and humidity proved to be bigger issues. Drivers called for ice bags and bottles of water under caution. And when the race was red flagged for nearby lightning, drivers welcomed the break.
Johnson climbed out of his car and immediately unzipped his fire suit, exposing an elaborate cooling system over his T-shirt. Michael McDowell started chugging water. Elliott grabbed a towel and wiped away sweat.
All of them headed toward haulers.
J.J. Yeley climbed out of his No. 27 a few laps before the red flag and collapsed on the pavement. He was helped onto a golf cart and taken to the medical center for evaluation and treatment.
Daniel Suarez had two crew members also leave the pits to get treatment.
