93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
(AP) – Denny Hamlin is the Daytona 500 winner for the second time in four years.
Hamlin took the checkered flag for Joe Gibbs Racing a month after Joe Gibbs’ oldest son died following a long battle with a degenerative neurological disease. J.D. Gibbs was 49.
Hamlin moved out front after a final restart and had teammate Kyle Busch blocking in the final lap as the pair created a sweep of the top three finishes for Gibbs Racing. Busch finished second, followed by Erik Jones. Defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano was fourth.
Hamlin last year suffered through his first winless season in the Cup Series and made a crew chief change during the offseason.
The Cup-opening event turned into a wreck-fest near the finish. “The Great American Race” had five crashes and two red flags over the final 20 laps of regulation.
