Hamlin wins at Homestead as Johnson celebrates sixth Sprint Cup title

HOMESTEAD, FL - NOVEMBER 17: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17, 2013 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images)
HOMESTEAD, FL - NOVEMBER 17: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17, 2013 in Homestead, Florida.  (Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images)
HOMESTEAD, FL – NOVEMBER 17: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 17, 2013 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images)

Denny Hamlin won the season ending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway Sunday night. The win was over shadowed however as Jimmie Johnson did what he had to do to win his sixth NASCAR Sprint Cup title.

Matt Kenseth did almost all he could leading the most laps (144 of 267) and coming home second, but with Johnsons ninth place finish, the title was Johnson’s by 19 points.  A late race restart nearly spelled disaster for Johnson but as he has done on more than one occasion Johnson was able to come back from 20th to finish inside the top 10.

The win for Hamlin came in a season when he was forced to set out several races after being injured early in the year. Johnson’s sixth title puts him one away from tying with Richard Petty and the late Dale Earnhardt Sr. for seven NASCAR Cup titles. MORE>>>

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.