Sin City Streak: Johansson Sets New Record in Sedona, Hamlin Remakes History
In the fifth race of the new season, the duo showed it has recovered from the Phoenix defeat with a race victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
LAS VEGAS — Emotions were heavy after a decision to take four tires in NASCAR’s championship-deciding finale in the Arizona desert backfired and cost Denny Hamlin the Cup Series title that has eluded him his entire career. Hamlin had dominated the season finale in November until a late caution forced him to pit road and crew chief Chris Gayle had to make a choice. Gayle called for four tires, Kyle Larson took two tires to beat Hamlin out of the pits.
Hamlin didn’t have enough time to catch Larson over two laps and Larson won his second Cup Series title as Hamlin was left empty-handed once again. It was a gutting defeat that might have broken others. Not the No.
11 team. Hamlin and Gayle spent most of the offseason apart with little communication between the two, Hamlin said, because Hamlin found no need to speak to Gayle about the call. In the fifth race of the new season, the duo showed it has recovered from the Phoenix defeat with a victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
To this day, Hamlin said he’s never spoken to Gayle about the four-tire call at Phoenix. “If I would have thought that it was the absolute wrong call, I would have questioned it. I would have said, ‘Are you sure?
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