A Thrilling Finish After a Rain Delay
Denny Hamlin’s victory at Dover on Sunday seemed almost certain with 14 laps remaining in the race. However, the day took an unexpected turn when Ross Chastain crashed, triggering a late caution flag. Soon after, rain began to fall, adding another layer of uncertainty to the race.
At that point, Hamlin was leading his teammate Christopher Bell and appeared poised for his fourth win of the season. But as it turned out, the race wasn’t over yet. The heavy rain was brief, allowing NASCAR to quickly dry the track. Approximately an hour after the race was red-flagged, it resumed for eight scheduled green-flag laps. In reality, the number of laps was much lower due to several incidents that unfolded during the restarts.
Bell spun during the first restart while competing with Hamlin for the lead, causing a multi-car crash. This incident involved Noah Gragson and William Byron. Later, Zane Smith and Ryan Preece also crashed following another restart. Despite these challenges, Hamlin managed to secure his Cup Series-leading fourth win of the season by holding off teammate Chase Briscoe in the final two laps.
This win marked a significant moment for Hamlin, especially considering the difficult week he had in court. His 23XI Racing team, along with Front Row Motorsports, lost their charters after a federal judge denied a temporary restraining order to keep them. The dispute centered around NASCAR’s franchising agreement, which both teams claimed was monopolistic. They argued that NASCAR gave its teams just hours to sign a new charter agreement in the fall of 2024.
The race ended up going seven laps beyond its scheduled distance due to the crashes that followed the rain delay. Fans who stayed at the track or watched on TNT witnessed an exciting conclusion to what had been a slow start to the race. With Scottie Scheffler’s dominant British Open victory overshadowing other sports events, NASCAR didn’t face much competition for viewers’ attention. The dramatic restarts provided compelling content for social media.
However, there were valid arguments against restarting the race, particularly for fans of drivers like Bell and Byron, whose races were affected by the delays. It was not surprising that crashes occurred during the final laps, as restarts are often the best opportunities for drivers to gain position. The differing tire strategies added to the likelihood of contact, as speed discrepancies between older and newer tires could easily lead to collisions.
Crashes can be costly for teams, and this is a NASCAR season where track time has been reduced in an effort to save costs for competitors. Even though the rain stopped quickly, cutting the race short by just 14 laps would have been a defensible decision. After all, it was a regular-season race in the middle of the summer, not a playoff event.
Had Chastain not crashed and the rain hit with less than 10 laps remaining, it’s likely that NASCAR would have called the race early. Instead, the final 20-plus actual laps delivered more excitement than the first 386 combined, providing a memorable end to what had initially been a lackluster race.
If someone like Briscoe or Kyle Larson had won after the rain, the outcome might have been harder to swallow. However, Hamlin, who was leading when the rain fell, proved why he remains a title contender by securing the win over an hour later than expected. His performance highlighted the unpredictability and excitement of NASCAR racing.
