Denny Hamlin's slim championship odds get boost with Martinsville pole
But he's also going to need Kyle Larson to suffer some kind of misfortune
Denny Hamlin's slim chances of securing the NASCAR Cup Series championship received a minor boost when he secured pole position at Martinsville Speedway on Saturday. Meanwhile, Kyle Larson is set to start the race in third place, making it unlikely for Hamlin to close the 73-point gap he currently holds with two races remaining.
Hamlin acknowledged the slim odds and admitted that he wouldn't be under pressure to make a significant move in the championship. He explained that they started "ahead of the chains" and only needed to execute well to advance. Hamlin even flirted with the idea of needing a miraculous win, but quickly dismissed any hope of that occurring.
Kyle Larson, on the other hand, is expected to score around 59 points, which could be enough to clinch the championship on Sunday.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
