MADISON, Ill. (AP) Nothing seems to distract Denny Hamlin, and the NASCAR star proved it again with a laser-focused victory at World Wide Technology Raceway on Sunday to advance in the Cup Series playoffs.
After a week in which his father was ailing and his 23XI Racing team lost a decision in its court battle with NASCAR , Hamlin compartmentalized his concerns and stayed on task for a virtually flawless weekend starting from the pole position and leading a race-high 75 of 240 laps.
I just step up, Hamlin said after his series-high fifth victory this season. All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better.
With his 59th career win, Hamlin advanced to the second round of the playoffs and joined Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe, who finished second after winning last weeks opener at Darlington Raceway . Chase Elliott finished third, followed by Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano as playoff drivers swept the top five spots at the 1.25-mile oval.
The No. 11 Toyota team called Hamlin to the pits for his final stop with 44 laps remaining, and he cycled to the front on a caution 15 laps later. The Virginia native seized the lead from Brad Keselowski on the restart, delivering the 200th win in NASCARs premier series for Toyota.
The Joe Gibbs Racing star celebrated with a long burnout down the front stretch of the track outside St. Louis that is commonly referred to as Gateway, bringing boos raining down from a sellout crowd to Hamlins delight.
You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon or get run over by it, he said. I want all the noise and all the heat.
Relishing life as a NASCAR villain is one of many roles being filled by the multitasking Hamlin, who also co-hosts a podcast while running 23XI Racing, the three-car team that he co-owns with NBA legend Michael Jordan.
Its had little impact on the on-track performance for Hamlin, who is in his 20th Cup season driving for team owner Joe Gibbs. At Gateway, he became the seventh driver in NASCAR history with multiple victories after his 700th start.
Team owner Joe Gibbs marvels at how Hamlin, who turns 45 in November and welcomed his third child in June, is able to juggle so much.
Hes in one meeting after another, Gibbs said with a laugh. The more stuff he does, the better off he is. Hes got a real drive to succeed.
The ultimate prize would be a first Cup championship, and Hamlin took another step toward that goal by locking into the next round ahead of the Sept. 13 race at Bristol Motor Speedway. The first-round cutoff race will trim the playoff field from 16 to 12 drivers.
After Gateway, Shane van Gisbergen, Austin Dillon, Alex Bowman and Josh Berry are outside the top 12.
After a 12th-place finish at Gateway, Kyle Larson can clinch a spot in the next round by simply starting at Bristol. Bubba Wallace, who finished eighth after leading 73 of 240 laps and winning the second stage, also is in a strong position to advance.
Rough start
Berry will need a win at Bristol to advance to the next round after opening his Cup playoff debut with consecutive last-place finishes. The Wood Brothers Racing driver was tapped in the left rear by Elliott, sending Berrys No. 21 Ford spinning into the Turn 2 wall on the 36th lap.
Chase and that team have done a lot for me, and I really doubt that was on purpose, said Berry, who crashed on the first lap of the playoff opener at Darlington Raceway . Just wrong place, wrong time for us again. Obviously, its unfortunate. Well just go to Bristol and try to do the best we can and put ourselves in position to race for a win, and thats really all we can do at this point.
Elliott apologized for the incident after the race.
I had no intention of getting into him, Elliott said. Ive known those guys my whole life, so I just hope that they know it wasnt anything intentional. I felt terrible about it right when it happened, and I wish I could take it back.
Former team owner dies
NASCAR announced the death of Bill Davis , whose teams won 40 races in the Cup, Xfinity and Truck series from 1993-2008. Davis had all five of his Cup victories with driver Ward Burton, including the 2001 Southern 500 and 2002 Daytona 500. The Arkansas native, who was 74, also fielded cars for Jeff Gordon and Bobby Labonte before they won Cup championships with other teams.
A championship-winning leader and owner, Bill Davis made a lasting mark on our sport through his passion and unwavering belief in the people around him, NASCAR said in a statement. Bill was more than a competitor he was a friend to all in the garage, respected for his kindness, generosity, and genuine love for racing.
Up next
The first round of the Cup playoffs will conclude next Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway. Larson has won consecutive races at Bristol , leading 872 of the past 1,000 laps on the 0.533-mile oval in Tennessee.
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AP auto racing:
美联社伊利诺伊州麦迪逊电 —— 似乎没有什么能分散丹尼·哈姆林（Denny Hamlin）的注意力。这位NASCAR明星车手周日在世界广域技术赛道（World Wide Technology Raceway）以高度专注的表现再次证明其实力，赢得比赛并成功晋级杯系列赛季后赛。
过去一周，汉密尔顿（Hamlin）的父亲身体抱恙，其所属的23XI Racing车队也在与NASCAR的诉讼中败诉。尽管如此，他仍将忧虑暂放一边，专注于比赛任务，度过了一个近乎完美的周末——从杆位发车，并在240圈比赛中领跑多达75圈。
“我只是不断进步，”哈姆林在本赛季第五次夺冠（系列赛最高纪录）后说道。“我能做的就是继续钻研比赛，持续寻求突破，每周都是提升自我的机会。”
凭借职业生涯第59场胜利，哈姆林成功晋级季后赛第二轮，并与乔·吉布斯车队的队友蔡斯·布里斯科汇合——后者上周在达灵顿赛道赢得揭幕战后，本站获得亚军。蔡斯·埃利奥特位列第三，瑞安·布莱尼和乔伊·洛加诺紧随其后，季后赛车手包揽了这条1.25英里椭圆形赛道的全部前五名。
丰田11号车队在剩余44圈时召哈姆林进站完成最后一次停站，15圈后因黄旗时机得当使他重回领先位置。这位弗吉尼亚州车手在比赛重启时从布拉德·凯瑟洛夫斯基手中夺过头名，为丰田赢得NASCAR顶级系列赛的第200场胜利。
乔·吉布斯车队的明星车手在圣路易斯市外的赛道上演了一场长时间烧胎庆祝，这条赛道通常被称为"门户赛道"。现场座无虚席的观众报以阵阵嘘声，而这恰恰让哈姆林（Denny Hamlin）乐在其中。
“你们尽可以嘘我，但要么加入潮流，要么被潮流碾过，”他说道，“我要的就是这喧嚣与热议。”
身兼多职的丹尼·哈姆林（Denny Hamlin）正享受着作为NASCAR（纳斯卡赛车）反派角色的生活，这只是他众多身份之一。他同时与人共同主持一档播客节目，并经营着与NBA传奇球星迈克尔·乔丹（Michael Jordan）共同拥有的三车车队23XI Racing。
这对哈姆林（Denny Hamlin）的赛道表现影响甚微。目前他正效力于车队老板乔·吉布斯（Joe Gibbs），迎来个人第20个杯赛赛季。在盖特威站比赛中，哈姆林完成第700次发车后，成为NASCAR历史上第七位多次夺冠的车手。
车队老板乔·吉布斯惊叹于哈姆林竟能同时应对如此多的事务——这位车手将在11月迎来45岁生日，6月又刚刚迎来第三个孩子的诞生。
吉布斯笑着说道："他一个会议接一个会议地开。做的事情越多，状态就越好。他有着强烈的成功驱动力。"
终极目标是首次捧起杯赛冠军奖杯，而哈姆林在9月13日布里斯托尔汽车赛道站比赛前成功锁定晋级名额，向这一目标又迈进了一步。首轮淘汰赛将使季后赛选手从16名缩减至12名。
盖特威站赛后，谢恩·范·吉斯伯根、奥斯汀·狄龙、亚历克斯·鲍曼与乔什·贝里均未能进入前十二名。
在盖特威站获得第12名后，凯尔·拉森只需在布里斯托尔站参赛即可锁定下一轮席位。布巴·华莱士（Bubba Wallace）在领跑240圈中的73圈并赢得第二阶段比赛后，最终以第八名完赛，同样处于晋级有利位置。
艰难的开局
贝里在杯赛季后赛首秀中连续两场垫底后，若想晋级下一轮，必须在布里斯托尔站夺冠。这位伍德兄弟车队的车手在第36圈时被埃利奥特从左后方撞击，导致其驾驶的21号福特赛车失控旋转，撞上了2号弯道的护墙。
“蔡斯（Chase）和整个团队为我付出了很多，我真心认为这次事故并非故意。”贝瑞（Berry）在达灵顿赛道季后赛首圈撞车后表示，“我们又一次遭遇了错误的地点、错误的时机。显然这很不幸。现在只能前往布里斯托尔，全力以赴争取最佳状态，为胜利而战——这就是我们目前唯一能做的。”
埃利奥特在赛后为该事件道歉。
“我并非有意冲撞他，”埃利奥特说道。“我和那些人从小相识，只希望他们明白这绝非故意为之。事发当时我就懊悔不已，真希望能收回那一刻。”
前球队老板逝世
美国纳斯卡赛车协会宣布比尔·戴维斯逝世，其麾下车队在1993至2008年间共赢得40场杯赛、Xfinity系列赛及卡车系列赛冠军。戴维斯的全部5次杯赛胜利均与车手沃德·伯顿合作取得，包括2001年南方500赛和2002年戴托纳500赛。这位74岁的阿肯色州人还曾为杰夫·戈登和博比·拉邦特提供赛车，二人后来分别在其他车队赢得杯赛总冠军。
纳斯卡在一份声明中表示："作为一位冠军领袖和车队老板，比尔·戴维斯（Bill Davis）以其对赛车的热情及对身边人坚定不移的信任，为这项运动留下了不可磨灭的印记。他不仅是竞争者，更是车库中所有人的朋友，其善良、慷慨和对赛车的真挚热爱赢得了广泛尊重。"
接下来
杯赛季后赛首轮将于下周六在布里斯托尔汽车赛道落幕。拉尔森已连续两届在该赛道夺冠，过去1000圈比赛中，他领跑了872圈——这条位于田纳西州的椭圆形赛道全长0.533英里。
美联社赛车新闻：
