Chase Elliott wins NASCAR Pocono race after Hamlin, Kyle Busch disqualified

Chase Elliott, who finished third on track, was named the winner of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Pocono Raceway after Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, the one-two finishers, were disqualified after post-race inspection.

Denny Hamlin had won another confrontation with Ross Chastain late in the race to finish first, winning by .927 of a second over Busch. Elliott was not a close third.

But inspection resulted in the rare disqualification of a NASCAR race winner, giving Elliott his fourth win of the year, which leads the series.

Chastain and Hamlin were first and second on a restart in the closing miles. Hamlin shot to the inside of Chastain and edged up the track, limiting Chastain’s lane. Chastain hit the outside wall, was hit by Kevin Harvick and slid into the inside wall and out of the race.

Chastain was running second to Kyle Busch with 38 laps to go when Busch pitted for fuel and tires. Chastain pitted a lap later. His pit crew’s work was about two seconds faster than Busch’s, and Chastain returned to the track in first place.

The race scenario changed with 23 laps to go when Ryan Blaney slid through turn three and sailed into the outside pit wall, bringing out a caution flag. That set up a restart with Chastain and Hamlin side-by-side, leading to anticipation that the two might have another on-track altercation.

They did.

Hamlin didn’t push Chastain into the wall on the restart, but he limited Chastain’s room to race. Hamlin had made it clear earlier in the season that he planned to get some revenge at some point for what Hamlin has described as Chastain’s rough driving. After Sunday’s incident, Chastain said it was “something I’ve been owed for a few months now.”

Hamlin said Chastain “just ran out of race track.”