Hamlin beats Said to Mexican win

A tough battle raged between 25-year-old Hamlin and experienced sportscar ace Boris Said for most of the race. Hamlin attacked polesitter Said as soon as the green flag was waved, but all of his many passing attempts were rebuffed.

Varied pit stop strategies then skewed the picture in the middle of the race, as many drivers (including Hamlin) pitted early in a bid to gain position, while Said opted to remain on track and in the lead as long as possible.

There was clearly little to choose between the two plans, because by the time the final pit stops were completed Hamlin and Said were back in first and second positions, albeit with Hamlin now ahead.

Their tense tussle duly resumed, but Hamlin was equal to the challenge and actually edged away a little in the closing stages before late yellows brought the pack back onto his tail. His ultimate winning margin of 0.401 seconds could have been rather greater without the interruptons.

Hamlin recognised the significance of a driver with his oval racing background overcoming Said on this classic road course.

"Ever since I first got on a road course, even just to practice, it came to me right away," said Hamlin. "If there's anyone I would rather have behind me, it's Boris Said - both because he's so competitive, and because you know he's going to race you clean. To beat him makes this win more worth it."

"We had a really good car, but Denny Hamlin really ran a great race," said Said. "I think if I was in front, he wouldn't have got by me. But second is still a good run for me."

Kevin Harvick and J.J. Yelley were fortunate to take third and fourth, the former having been penalised for passing before a restart and the latter spinning down to 39th after contact on lap two. Sharp strategy brought Yelley back into contention, while a luckily timed full course yellow allowed Harvick to take his drive through penalty with minimal delay.

Belgian sportscar driver Marc Goossens was one of the stars of the race, moving rapidly onto Said and Hamlin's tails in his first NASCAR appearance. Problems with the right rear wheel at his final pit stop took him out of the hunt for victory, but ninth was still a superb result.

Carlos Contreras headed the Mexican contingent in 10th. Jorge Goeters fought for the lead initially but was penalised for cutting the chicane and lost more ground with a spin, while Adrian Fernandez was collected by the out-of-control Jamie McMurray early on and later tangled with Jon Wood.

A collision with Kyle Busch ended Michel Jourdian Jr's day, ironically just half a lap after he had taken the lead during the pit stops. Unsurprisingly both McMurray and Busch were subjected to jeers from the fervent home fans after their incidents with the local heroes.

Champ Car ace Paul Tracy was another high profile driver in the wars. He quickly advanced from 23rd on the grid to run in the top ten but had to retire after running into the back of Fernandez.

Pos  Driver               Make       Laps
 1.  Denny Hamlin         Chevrolet  80
 2.  Boris Said           Dodge      80
 3.  Kevin Harvick        Chevrolet  80
 4.  J.J. Yeley           Chevrolet  80
 5.  Paul Menard          Chevrolet  80
 6.  Johnny Sauter        Chevrolet  80
 7.  Kyle Busch           Chevrolet  80
 8.  Carl Edwards         Ford       80
 9.  Marc Goossens        Ford       80
10.  Jamie McMurray       Dodge      80
11.  Carlos Contreras     Dodge      80
12.  Adrian Fernandez     Chevrolet  80
13.  Ashton Lewis         Ford       80
14.  Mark McFarland       Chevrolet  80
15.  Jorge Goeters        Ford       80
16.  Clint Bowyer         Chevrolet  80
17.  Jason Leffler        Chevrolet  80
18.  Burney Lamar         Chevrolet  80
19.  Kenny Wallace        Ford       80
20.  Chris Cook           Dodge      80
21.  Anthony Foyt         Dodge      80
22.  Jason Keller         Dodge      80
23.  John Andretti        Ford       80
24.  Jay Sauter           Chevrolet  80
25.  Regan Smith          Ford       80
26.  Danny O'Quinn Jr.    Ford       80
27.  Jon Wood             Ford       80
28.  Aaron Fike           Dodge      80
29.  Rogelio Lopez        Dodge      80
30.  Tim Sauter           Chevrolet  80
31.  Patrick Goeters      Chevrolet  78
32.  Todd Kluever         Ford       75
33.  Ron Fellows          Chevrolet  74
34.  Joel Kauffman        Dodge      66
35.  David Green          Ford       63
36.  Reed Sorenson        Dodge      61
37.  Paul Tracy           Dodge      59
38.  Michel Jourdain Jr.  Ford       53
39.  Jimmy Morales        Dodge      35
40.  Michael Waltrip      Dodge      34
41.  Randy LaJoie         Chevrolet  26
42.  Carlos Pardo         Chevrolet  26
43.  Stacy Compton        Ford       4