Kevin Harvick won the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana on Sunday and got some help after Denny Hamlin crashed with seven laps to go due to a tire blowout.
Hamlin was leading the race but blew a tire and crashed into the wall, leading his No. 11 car to catch fire. He was able to climb from the car and escape safely.
"These big races… stuff doesn't go my way all the time."
Hear from @DennyHamlin after a tough break took him out of the race lead and out of the #Brickyard400 at @IMS. pic.twitter.com/yulX5nsvY3
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 6, 2020
Hamlin took a shot at Goodyear tires after the race, saying it’s like “roulette” when using them.
“We didn’t do what we needed to do. It didn’t work for us today,” he told NBC Sports after the race. “We were stretching out there … it’s kind of roulette whether you get one that’s going to stay together or not. Mine didn’t, and you saw the end result. It stinks … I feel like I’m doing all I can. These races, just a lot of things like this don’t go my way all the time.”
Hamlin finished 28th.
Harvick now has four wins this year to match Hamlin’s totals. He said in an interview with NBC Sports that his crew chief Rodney Childers told him Hamlin was risking it with his tires.
“We knew he was going to be really close on tires. Rodney (Childers) told me, ‘just make sure you keep the pressure on him’, and that was all the pressure I could give,” Harvick said.
Putting the pressure on paid off for Harvick, who claimed his third career Brickyard 400 win. This year, Harvick has now won The Real Heroes 400 at Darlington, the Fold of Honor 500, the Pocono Organics 325 and the Brickyard 400.
