Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl
Carl Edwards has snapped a 70-race losing streak with a win at Phoenix International Raceway.
But the attention Sunday was on the three-driver championship race, and a dominating performance by Denny Hamlin that was derailed by poor fuel mileage in his Toyota.
Hamlin led a race-high 190 laps but didn’t have the gas to make it to the finish. He gave up second place with 14 laps left for a fuel stop, and finished 12th.
Jimmie Johnson conserved enough gas to make it to the end and finished fifth. Kevin Harvick overcame a loose lugnut and came in sixth.
Before his fuel stop, Hamlin held a lead of almost 60 points over Johnson. Instead, he now takes a 15-point lead over Johnson into next week’s season finale.