Sunday at Las Vegas became a defining moment in this year’s playoffs. Denny Hamlin started on pole and stayed in the mix all day, while Kyle Larson ran dominant for long stretches, leading a race-high 129 laps. As the laps wound down, Hamlin picked the right moment. He passed two cars in the final ten laps, took the top spot from Chase Briscoe with four laps to go, and then held off Larson by 1.533 seconds to score his 60th career win. He also punched his ticket to the Championship 4 at Phoenix.
The win was more than a checkered flag; it was uncharacteristically emotional. Hamlin addressed the crowd with a weight in his voice, mentioning his father, who’s been ill. “This win means a lot,” he said, and later, “We were hoping to get 60 [wins] today … Just put the pedal down those last 10 laps and made it happen.”
Larson finished second. Behind him came Christopher Bell in third, Chase Briscoe was fourth, and Tyler Reddick rounded out the top five.
Ryan Blaney’s day ended early when a flat tire sent him hard into the wall, destroying the No. 12 car and ending his playoff hopes. It was a brutal way to go out for the defending series champion.
In Stage 2, Larson distanced the field to claim the segment, even as Chase Elliott and Bubba Wallace were penalized on pit road.
Hopefully, given Elliott’s luck in the fall race in Vegas, he stays far away from gambling. He qualified well and ran inside the top six before his crew lost control of a tire on a green flag stop at lap 121, incurring a penalty that dropped him a lap down. Finally gaining the lap back, he fought hard the rest of the way just to finish 18th so it was another frustrating Vegas outing.
In the final stage, pit timing and fuel gambles became crucial. With 46 laps to go, Byron and Larson traded the long run lead. But Byron’s race fell apart after slamming into Ty Dillon. Dillon slowed suddenly in the middle of the track without signaling he was pitting, leaving Byron with no time to react. The hit was massive, and Byron was devastated afterward, with most observers blaming Dillon and his spotter for poor communication.
After the pit cycle, Briscoe and Logano dueled tight for the lead while several others were collected in a mid-pack wreck involving Gibbs, Wallace, van Gisbergen, and others.
As the laps counted down, Hamlin threaded a line past Larson into turn one with about five laps remaining. He made a decisive pass with four to go and defended all the way to the flag.
Because of this win, Hamlin became the first driver to clinch a Championship 4 spot in 2025.
The field now enters the final stretch of the season with Hamlin locked in and the other three drivers still to be determined.
Photo Credit: LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 12: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 ampm Toyota, drives during the NASCAR Cup Series South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 12, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)