CUP: Hamlin Tops 5 To Watch List At NHMS

Sprint Cup

CUP: Hamlin Tops 5 To Watch List At NHMS

Denny Hamlin is fresh off a victory Saturday night at Richmond...

Tom Jensen | Posted September 17, 2009 Charlotte, NC

Winning last week at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway means Denny Hamlin is on a roll going into New Hampshire. (Photo: Getty Images)

Forget for a moment about this thing called the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

On Sunday, 43 drivers will be lining up at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the running of the Sylvania 300, race No. 27 on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule for 2009. Of those 43, 12 will be racing for a championship, but all 43 will be racing for the best finish possible, ideally a victory.

With that thought in mind, here’s this week’s 5 To Watch list, SPEEDtv.com’s predicted favorites on Sunday at the 1.058-mile oval.

1. DENNY HAMLIN, Joe Gibbs Racing — The Virginia native has absolutely everything going for him this week. First off, he loves flat tracks like NHMS, where his 8.286 finishing average is demonstrably superior to that of anyone else in the field.

Second of all, he’s red hot, coming off a victory last Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway and a string of seven top-five finishes in his last 12 Cup starts this season. Most of all, Hamlin knows he needs to get this Chase off to a good start.

“About the first three races for us makes or breaks our Chase every year,” Hamlin said. “People argue and there’s no one race that means more than another – that ain’t true. For us, it’s the first three. If we stumble in those first three we never make it up – we never do. We never come from behind.”

2. JIMMIE JOHNSON, Hendrick Motorsports — Johnson will be eager to get his title defense off to a good start on Sunday, especially since he’s been erratic lately. In the last six races, he’s led a total of 280 laps, yet his only top-10 finish in that stretch was an eighth at Bristol Motor Speedway, historically his weakest track.

But Johnson is very, very good at NHMS, where his average finish is 9.867. In this race a year ago, he finished second, and he has top-10 finishes in eight of his last nine NHMS races.

“You come into the Chase with whatever momentum that you have had the last couple of tracks,” said Johnson. “I feel that we have been decent and I am optimistic for the Chase, but again you don’t know. Those 10 races sound short but they are so long and you just never know what is going to happen with mechanical failures and all those kind of things. So we just need to give 100 percent every week and see where we wind up. Nobody has had a clear advantage.”

3. JEFF GORDON, Hendrick Motorsports — Four times in the last six New Hampshire races, the four-time Sprint Cup champion has ended the race in the top three positions, including three runner-up finishes. He knows his way around this track and should do very well on Sunday, as well as in the Chase.

“I know we didn't win as many races as we wanted to during the first 26 but I think our team showed just how strong we are and I think we are going to give these guys a lot to think about over these next 10 races,” said Gordon, who has finished second in six races this season.

“Our Richmond run (a third-place finish) gives us some momentum going in to the Chase. I am fired up, really fired up. The momentum going into New Hampshire is there. This team is solid and I think we have a great shot at it. I know we've got some points to make up but I think this team is really capable and ready to do that.”

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Tom Jensen

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