“We had some good short-track racing those last few laps,” said Hamlin of his battle with Keselowski around the half-mile oval. “Hats off to Brad — he had an option (whether or not to wreck my car) and he took the latter. So (I) thank him for that.”
Keselowski gave it his best during the final laps. He battled Hamlin around the racetrack and nudged the leader as they drove off the final corner, sending Hamlin a bit sideways. But Hamlin wasn’t to be deterred on this day and crossed the finish line to win the STP 500 .186 seconds ahead of Keselowski.
“I don’t know what else I could have done other than drive right through him,” Keselowski said. “I hit him pretty good a couple of times. I did everything I could, other than wreck him.”
Savouring his fifth career win at Martinsville Speedway, Hamlin reflected on breaking a 31-race streak which saw him enter Victory Lane in nearly a year. It was the 25th win for Hamlin in the Sprint Cup Series.
“We were able to overcome the pit road issues that we had, (and) we had some engine issues that didn’t allow me to be as good on pit road as what I could be,” said Hamlin. “That was a bit of a challenge, and so trust me, I didn’t like to see any cautions fly because I knew that there was a chance we were going to lose positions.”
The race winner also commented on an incident around Lap 166, when a tire got away from a crew member during a pit stop. Hamlin was assessed a penalty and had to go to the back of the field. He said the motivation for getting beyond that incident came from team owner Joe Gibbs.
“Joe doesn’t raise his voice very often, but he did this time,” Hamlin said. “He told us to get off our tails and get to work.”
Daytona 500 winner Joey Logano placed third in the race.
Hamlin’s victory came as much-needed good news for a team battling through a difficult time. During the week prior to the race, the team announced that J.D. Gibbs, the organization’s president, is undergoing treatment for “symptoms impacting areas of brain function.” Joe Gibbs said doctor’s are unclear as to the source of his son’s ailment.
“For me, it was emotional, thinking about J.D. And all that he means to our team,” the owner said after the race. “There’s very few answers. We’ve been dealing with this for about six months and, basically, what the doctors say is that they really don’t know.”
Another story at Martinsville on Sunday was the snapping of Kevin Harvick’s Top-2 finishes. Harvick led the field for a race-high 154 laps, but was stoic on his race.
“Just lost track position at the wrong time,” he said.
The reigning Sprint Cup champion’s streak of consecutive Top-2 placings ends at eight. Ironically, Harvick finished eighth in the STP 500 to end the streak.
Harvick continues to lead the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings. Logano sits second, 24 points behind the leader, and Martin Truex Jr. is third, eight points further back.
The first night race of the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season, the Duck Commander 500, is next on the schedule and will run at Texas Motor Speedway on April 11, 2015.
