The NASCAR Cup Series headed to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the opening race of the Round of 8. Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports dominated qualifying, with Hamlin snatching pole position over Chase Briscoe and Christopher Bell, while HMS’s playoff trio of Elliott, Byron and Larson were 4 through 6, completing the top 6 sweep for the two dominant teams. The Penske playoff drivers Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney started 9th and 14th respectively.
It was a straightforward race most of the time, but calamity struck on the final stage, splitting strategies and with wrecks that brought everybody together, and Denny Hamlin nailed the closing laps to take home the win and a berth to the 2025 Championship 4 at Phoenix.
Only the greats reside here.
Welcome to the Top 10, @dennyhamlin. pic.twitter.com/ZLIocGo2QL— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 13, 2025
On the opening lap, Denny Hamlin missed a shift on the backstretch, and Chase Briscoe was able to take the lead early. As the run progressed, Hamlin tried to challenge, but Briscoe pulled away by over 3 seconds.
The battle throughout the top 10 was intense, but it seemed like the Hendrick cars had the edge on the long run, as Byron passed Denny Hamlin for 2nd around lap 30, right before the pit stop cycle.
Tyler Reddick kicked off green flag pit stops on lap 31, and everyone followed. Briscoe, the leader by 4 seconds before the cycle, was the last to pit on lap 34 but had a slow stop, being passed by Byron, Reddick, and Larson, with Byron taking the race lead after everyone cycled. These laps were the first Byron led since leading five laps at Daytona in August. The third race he’s led in the last 16 and the first in the playoffs.
On lap 72, Ryan Blaney, who was complaining about a loose car, had a tire issue and smacked the outside wall. He DNF’d after the wreck with a destroyed right front.
The caution came out late on the stage, and all the lead lap drivers pitted for four tires to flip the stage. On the restart with 3 to go, Byron and Larson shared the front row, but Byron had an amazing restart and pulled away. Behind him, however, it was a dogfight for every position, but it was Kyle Larson who prevailed for 2nd place.
1st. William Byron (P)
2nd. Kyle Larson (P)
3rd. Chase Briscoe (P)
4th. Denny Hamlin (P)
5th. Chase Elliott (P)
6th. Bubba Wallace
7th. Christopher Bell (P)
8th. Tyler Reddick
9th. Ty Gibbs
10th. Joey Logano (P)
On the restart, Byron had the lead as nobody needed to pit thanks to the late caution on the first stage, but a contact with Chase Briscoe nearly sent William Byron spinning, but the driver of the 24 was able to hang on and save it. The lead, however, was handed to Kyle Larson in the process.
On the pit stop cycle, Chase Elliott had an uncontrolled tire while running in the top 5, falling all the way down to 30th and a lap down. After the cycle, Tyler Reddick tried to challenge Kyle Larson for the lead, but was unable to pass.
Kyle Larson held on to the lead to win the second Stage at Vegas. Chase Elliott fought for the free pass position and earned it, getting back to the lead lap. It was Larson’s 10th stage win of the season.
1st. Kyle Larson (P)
2nd. Tyler Reddick
3rd. William Byron (P)
4th. Denny Hamlin (P)
5th. Chase Briscoe (P)
6th. Christopher Bell (P)
7th. Ty Gibbs
8th. Alex Bowman
9th. Joey Logano (P)
10th. Carson Hocevar
Before the restart, playoff driver Joey Logano, who was running 9th, had a slow stop that sent him back to 16th. The battle for the lead was intense for a few laps, but Kyle Larson prevailed once again.
The pit stop cycle was crucial for the playoff drivers. Kyle Larson, who was dominating the stage, had a slightly slower stop and gave away the lead to William Byron. Meanwhile, Denny Hamlin had a very slow stop and lost several spots.
William Byron, the leader, got loose out of turn 3, and Kyle Larson took the lead from him.
In a bizarre incident, Ty Dillon slowed down to go down pit road but missed the entry, and William Byron, who was running 2nd and coming right behind him, plowed into him and destroyed his car. He DNF’d, putting himself in a big hole going into Talladega.
The caution with less than 30 to go split strategies; Chase Briscoe, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, and others pitted for two tires, with Briscoe and Logano taking the front row. Through turns 1 and 2, a big crash happened when they stacked up on the back half of the top 10.
Luckily, no playoff drivers got damage. On the restart, Joey Logano challenged Briscoe’s lead, and Briscoe was able to hold on to it. On four fresh tires, Denny Hamlin passed both Kyle Larson and Chase Briscoe in the closing laps, taking the race lead.
Denny Hamlin took home his 6th win of the year, the most of the season, and his 60th career win, but more importantly, clinched a spot in the Championship 4 at Phoenix.
1st. Denny Hamlin (Advanced)
2nd. Kyle Larson +35
3rd. Christopher Bell +20
4th. Chase Briscoe +15
——Cutline——
5th. William Byron -15
6th. Chase Elliott -23
7th. Joey Logano -24
8th. Ryan Blaney -31
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