Denny Hamlin took the checkered flag in Sunday’s race at Darlington for his second consecutive victory. Hamlin did his part in overtime, but it was his pit crew that put him in position to win.
Hamlin came down pit road third and his crew got him out of their stall in 8.3 seconds, giving him the lead as the race went into overtime. He was so fast off pit road, many believed he was speeding and that NASCAR missed it.
Cup Series managing director Brad Moran addressed the theory during a Tuesday appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Moran confirmed Hamlin had green lights across the board and no reds to signal he was speeding.
“Each pit road is obviously a different length and a different shape,” Moran said, via Matt Weaver of Sportsnaut. “There are timing loops that are put around, 8-to-13 loops depending on what track it is and it’s all electronically timed. If you speed through a section, it gives you a five mile an hour buffer and if you’re 5.01 over, you’re speeding. You can manipulate your speed through those sections but it’s really clear, a black and white rule and Denny did not speed through that pit stop.”
Denny Hamlin credits pit crew for Darlington win
Per Bozi Tatarevic of Road & Track/Motorsport, Hamlin’s speed in the final sector of pit road was 47.79 mph. The speed limit on pit road is 49.99 mph.
Hamlin and his crew executed at the biggest moment in the race. Hamlin said his crew were “salivating” at the opportunity, and they certainly performed.
“Last week, the pit crew got a lot of attention on different things they were doing and for them to get to showcase it at the end of this race in a green-white-checkered situation where they know that if they get you out with a lead, your chances of winning are pretty high,” Hamlin told Kevin Harvick. “They were salivating at that opportunity, and they took advantage of it.”
