NASCAR New Hampshire 2014: Denny Hamlin experiences dreadful day

Denny Hamlin’s promising day turned disastrous as a mechanical failure and a wreck has placed him on the cusp of not advancing past the first round of NASCAR’s Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Starting fourth, Hamlin jumped into the lead following the initial sequence of pits and led for the next 32 laps Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. A fuel-pickup issue, however, prevented the No. 11 team from getting his car full of fuel, necessitating additional pit stops and costing Hamlin five laps to the field.

As a result of his problems Hamlin found himself in the back of the pack where he would find more misfortune. When David Ragan spun in Turn 1, Hamlin could not slow in time and slid into Ragan’s car. Both drivers sustained heavy damage.

Ragan retired, while Hamlin headed to the garage for extensive repairs. Hamlin eventually returned finishing 37th, but fell before the Chase cutoff and is in danger of being eliminated.

“We couldn’t get fuel in it from the get go,” Hamlin said. “Don’t know where that’s coming from. You just can’t have any mistakes in this three-race Chase deal. We went from looking pretty and probably going to coast our way to the next round to a long shot, at best.

“It’s frustrating, but what can you do about it. Really can’t do anything about it honestly. You just have to suck it up and move on and try to do the best you can next week.”

Under NASCAR’s revised Chase format Hamlin sits 13th in the standings with one race before the field is paired from 16 drivers to 12. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver needs a good next week at Dover International Speedway to avoid elimination.

But Dover has long been one of Hamlin’s worst tracks, as his average finish of 19.6 is second-worst among ovals. A similar result next Sunday will likely see Hamlin failing to advance to Round 2 of the Chase.

Hamlin had finished sixth in the playoff opener at Chicagoland Speedway and came into New Hampshire confident of a good finish, a track where he had won twice previously.

“It’s so frustrating because you know on performance you deserve to move on,” Hamlin said. “In this three-race section, you just can’t have one bad week. Not right now. And, so you’ve got to be flawless. You’ve got to be at your best these last 10 (races).”