Chase Elliott won the Cup Series’ first road course race at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, holding off hard-charging Denny Hamlin following a late restart and notching his third consecutive victory away from ovals.
NASCAR’s most popular driver, the son of Hall of Famer Bill Elliott, got a tougher challenge than many expected down the stretch.
The 24-year-old driver had a 10-second lead with 10 laps to go and was pulling away when Kyle Busch blew a tire and brought out a caution that gave his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr., a chance.
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But Elliott stayed out front on the final restart. Hamlin got to his rear bumper on the last lap but couldn’t do enough to mount any significant pressure.
Hamlin finished second, followed by Truex and seven-time series champion Jimmie Johnson.
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