NASCAR Cup Series

Phoenix Recap: Denny Hamlin finished seventh in the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Phoenix International Raceway and was eliminated from the 2016 Chase playoffs. Hamlin started fifth and ran most of the first half of the race in the top-five, but with track position at a premium, Hamlin and crew chief Mike Wheeler gambled and stayed out to inherit the lead during a caution period with 51 laps to go.

Stenhouse has four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) starts at Homestead-Miami Speedway (HMS) with an average starting position of 18.5 and average finishing position of 26.2.

Richard Childress Racing's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series history at Homestead-Miami Speedway ... Homestead-Miami Speedway is one of the few race tracks where team owner Richard Childress has yet to earn a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory. Richard Childress Racing entries have finished second on four occasions: 2003 (Kevin Harvick), 2008 (Harvick), 2009 (Jeff Burton) and 2014 (Ryan Newman)

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season will come to an end Sunday at Ford Championship Weekend as Homestead-Miami Speedway hosts the Ford EcoBoost 400. Joey Logano has advanced to the Championship 4 for the second time in three years and will try to win his first series title on Sunday afternoon.

A year ago, during Ford Championship Weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Eddie and Len Wood along with representatives of Ford Motor Company and Motorcraft/Quick Lane announced the latest chapter in the long and storied history of the Wood Brothers racing team.

Ty Dillon and the No. 95 Advil Chevrolet SS in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway ... Ty Dillon is scheduled to make his 11th Sprint Cup Series start of the 2016 season this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Dillon has one previous NSCS start at the 1.5-mile speedway; he drove the No. 33 Nexium® 24HR Chevrolet SS to a 23rd-place finish last November.

It sucks not to matter. Forty cars took to the track at Phoenix, and only six of them mattered. Not Jimmie Johnson or Carl Edwards. Both had already locked in a final four berth at Homestead, so they mattered not. Not Kyle Larson or Trevor Bayne, who spun early.

1. Jimmie Johnson: Johnson finished 38th at Phoenix, 28 laps down, his day ruined by a penalty for passing the pit car during a pit stop.

To match the championship aura of Ford Championship Weekend, November 18-20, Homestead-Miami Speedway has named NBC’s “This Is Us” actor Justin Hartley as Grand Marshal for the Ford EcoBoost 400 on November 20. Hartley will give the famous command of “Drivers, start your engines!” just before the green flag waves for the NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series championship race, which will be broadcast live on NBC.

Number of times Joey Logano has made it to the Championship 4 in the new Chase format (ties with Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch for the most among the Championship 4) – Logano finished fourth in the 2014 Chase standings after finishing 16th in the race.