Denny Hamlin is currently sidelined with a back injury. (Photo: Getty Images)
Denny Hamlin, looking to rebound from a disappointing finish last week at Chicagoland Speedway, led Saturday morning’s first practice for Sunday’s Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Hamlin had a fast lap of 131.656 miles per hour.
Following in the top five were Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch.
In the second five were Brian Vickers, Clint Bowyer, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart.
Gordon won the pole Friday.
The slowest of the 12 Chase drivers in the practice was Matt Kenseth, who was 23rd fastest.
The day’s second and final practice is scheduled from 11 to 11:50 a.m. ET. SPEED will televise the session.
Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 30 years. He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.