Denny Hamlin Wins Michigan, Tying Kyle Busch All-Time

Denny Hamlin won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday, his second consecutive victory and third of the 2026 season. As the season approaches its halfway point, the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team appears to be the greatest threat to Tyler Reddick’s dominant championship campaign.

“This Joe Gibbs team just keeps giving me amazing race cars,” Hamlin said. “At the last run there it just hammered down. I had a few good restarts and then once we got to the lead I was gonna lay it out while I had it.”

In both of Hamlin’s last two wins, he’s rallied from the back of the field. Last week Hamlin was penalized for jumping the start from the pole. He repeated on the pole this week, but was sent to the back again for unapproved adjustments.

Sunday’s win brings Hamlin to 63 career wins, tying him with his longtime teammate Kyle Busch for ninth on the all-time wins list. Hamlin celebrated his win with a flag honoring Busch, who passed away just two weeks ago.

Erik Jones’ Breakout Week

Erik Jones finished second, capping off the best intermediate track race for Legacy Motor Club to date in 2026. Jones entered the race 21st in points, seeking his first top-five of the season. Though the No. 43 Toyota didn’t have the pace to run down Denny Hamlin, Jones did deliver his team a strong enough points day to rise to 18th.

“I really think we had the best car, and it just didn’t work out perfect,” Jones said. “Everything has to work out really well and some things just didn’t go right at the end.”

Vicious Hit for Bell, Elliott

Contact between @chaseelliott and @CBellRacing brings out the yellow on Lap 148. pic.twitter.com/R4qc5Fv61k

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) June 7, 2026

On Lap 148 Chase Elliott appeared to get loose underneath Christopher Bell in the corner, sending both cars hard into the outside wall. The impact was violent enough to severely damage the SAFER barrier, causing a red flag for critical repairs. Both drivers thankfully exited their cars quickly.

Elliott accepted blame for the incident in his television interview, saying he regretted bringing such an unfortunate end for a driver he races well against. He and Bell shared a brief moment after exiting their cars to confirm that one another was okay.

“Totally my fault, I feel really bad for Bell,” Elliott said. “I was just trying to run to the bottom and kinda make use of our fresh tires and try and at least get to second. I was hoping to hopefully stay side-by-side by him.”

Frontstretch Pileups

Sunday’s race saw multiple incidents in which a litany cars were collected on the front straightaway. On a Lap 83 restart the first of these crashes was tipped off following contact between Carson Hocevar and John Hunter Nemechek. Almost a dozen cars slammed the wall or spun in tight traffic. The incident also involved Austin Dillon, Ty Gibbs, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick, and Bubba Wallace.

The next pileup was on Lap 155, following contact between Michael McDowell and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. That wreck collected Josh Berry, Ty Dillon, Noah Gragson, Austin Hill, Ryan Preece, and Shane van Gisbergen.

Zilisch’s Horrific Stretch Continues

For the third straight week of NASCAR Cup Series action, Connor Zilisch and the No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet were the last-place finishers. At Charlotte Motor Speedway he was collected by a spinning Austin Cindric, totaling both drivers’ cars. Last week at Nashville Superspeedway it was a faulty brake rotor that ended the 19-year-old’s day.

As early as Lap 3 on Sunday, Zilisch brought out the first caution of the race by spinning unassisted and making contact with the outside wall. On the ensuing Lap 9 restart Zilisch spun again, this time slamming the inside wall. The damage in this second wreck was enough to retire the No. 88 Chevrolet for the day.

Points Outlook

The results of Michigan didn’t cost any drivers a place in the Chase, but it did shake the standings up significantly. Bubba Wallace was the foremost benefactor, vaulting from 15th to 11th thanks to a much-needed third-place finish. Second-place finisher Erik Jones gained three spots, moving from 21st to 18th. Denny Hamlin sliced Tyler Reddick’s points lead from 97 to 51.

Christopher Bell lost three spots in points, falling to tenth after his vicious Lap 148 crash. Shane van Gisbergen and Brad Keselowski dropped two spots apiece, with both drivers in danger of falling outside the top 16.

RFK Racing’s Ryan Preece lost two spots and is no longer the first driver outisde the Chase cutoff line. That spot now belongs to Joey Logano, who delivered a seventh-place finish as his Team Penske squad have struggled to maintain speed. Logano’s teammate Austin Cindric is the last drive in the Chase, three points to the good heading into Pocono.

Race Results