HAMLIN CLAIMS TOP-FIVE FINISH, EXTENDS POINTS ADVANTAGE
Bell, Truex sit above the cutline heading into Charlotte
TALLADEGA, Ala. (October 1, 2023) – Denny Hamlin overcame a pit road penalty to drive through the field and finish fourth to lead Toyota in the NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. With the run, Hamlin holds a 50-point advantage over the Playoff cutline heading to the final race of the round of 12 – the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.
Christopher Bell (15th) is fourth, 22 points to the good, while Martin Truex Jr. (19th) holds a 17-point advantage over ninth-place Tyler Reddick. Reddick, who finished 17th, is just two points back of advancing with Bubba Wallace just nine points out in 11th.
Toyota Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Talladega Superspeedway
Race 31 of 36 – 500.08 miles, 188 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Ryan Blaney*
2nd, Kevin Harvick*
3rd, William Bryon*
4th, DENNY HAMLIN
5th, Corey LaJoie*
15th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
17th, TYLER REDDICK
19th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
24th, BUBBA WALLACE
33rd, TY GIBBS
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 Mavis Tires & Brakes Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 4th
You had a little bit of everything today and ended up with a good points day. Can you tell me about your race?
“Not how we drew it up, but a dub is a dub and that was a dub in our book – it’s as close as it gets to it. I’m proud of this whole Mavis Toyota team for bringing me a car fast enough to win. When I had to go there, I could and made the right moves at the right time and a top-five is a long way from where we were with about 15 laps to go.”
TYLER REDDICK, No. 45 McDonald’s Toyota Camry TRD, 23XI Racing
Finishing Position: 17th
What was missing from your car today?
“I don’t think we are really missing anything really. Our McDonald’s Toyota Camry TRD was pretty strong. I couldn’t push a couple of the Toyota’s very good, but I could get pushed good. I feel like we just had a solid car. The pit strategy under green flag conditions didn’t really work out for us too well. Me and Bubba (Wallace) kind of just took a chance hoping the bottom and the middle would choke themselves on the restart. The last four or five laps after the restart were the fastest laps were turned all day, so just made it really difficult for the top line to work – just kind of got a little bit fortunate. We fell to the back of the lead lap – 29th or 30th – and just got to the bottom and found a few holes and got something out of it. Outside by two is not really bad for us, I don’t think, as long as we left better than we came in, I felt good about our chances. It’s pretty straight forward right. I think we will have to go after stage points, but that is okay. If we can get 20 there, I’m sure we can salvage a good finish and make it to the round of 8.”
MARTIN TRUEX JR., No. 19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 19th
How do you look at the day?
“It was alright. I thought our Bass Pro Camry was pretty good, just could never get in the right lane at the right time. We were stuck on the bottom there in the end, I think with three to go we were up to 10th or 12th and three laps later we were 19th. Nowhere to make any moves, just everything was clogged and you just kind of rode there and got what you could. Tough day, but I think we are in good shape going to the ROVAL. We can take care of business there, just need a good day.”
TY GIBBS, No. 54 Monster Energy Toyota Camry TRD, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 35th
When you got involved, it looked like a huge hit for you. What was it like for you?
“Yeah, I just got hit out of nowhere in the right rear. It’s really unfortunate. We had a pretty good Monster Energy Toyota Camry. We were working our way back up and getting ready for the end – just really unfortunate.”
What did you see out there?
“I didn’t really see much. Just really unfortunate. A really big bummer – we had a really good Monster Energy Toyota Camry.”
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in North America for more than 65 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our more than 1,800 dealerships.
Toyota directly employs more than 63,000 people in North America who have contributed to the design, engineering, and assembly of nearly 45 million cars and trucks at our 13 manufacturing plants. By 2025, Toyota’s 14th plant in North Carolina will begin to manufacture automotive batteries for electrified vehicles. With more electrified vehicles on the road than any other automaker, Toyota currently offers 24 electrified options.
