New Hampshire NASCAR: Matt Kenseth wins, Kevin Harvick out of fuel
Matt Kenseth won at New Hampshire to secure his place in the second round of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase, as long-time leader Kevin Harvick ran out of fuel
Harvick dominated the race, leading 216 of the 300 laps, but slowed with just two laps remaining after trying to stretch fuel mileage through a wild end to the event.
That handed the lead to Kenseth, who came home to claim his fifth win of the campaign by eight seconds from Joe Gibbs Racing team-mate Denny Hamlin.
Defending Cup champion Harvick dropped to 21st after his late stop and now sits 15th in the Chase rankings with just a single race left in the opening round of the playoffs.
Joey Logano was third for Penske, ahead of non-Chase runner Greg Biffle and polesitter Carl Edwards, who made it three Joe Gibbs Racing cars in the top five.
Jimmie Johnson dropped down the order after a front-left tyre failure but battled his way back through to finish sixth, from Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr.
Kasey Kahne was ninth, while Ryan Newman rounded out the top 10.
Brad Keselwoski featured at the front of the pack for the opening 250 laps, but picked up a penalty for a restart violation that dropped him to the back of the lead lap.
The Penske racer, who was judged to have jumped the restart after the 10th caution, fought his way through the field to finish 12th.
Like his Stewart-Haas team-mate Harvick, Kurt Busch ran out of fuel in the closing stages, dropping to 19th at the chequered flag.
Kyle Busch's Chase ambitions took a dent when he crashed heavily just after the halfway mark, losing 36 laps and finishing 37th.
RESULTS - 300 LAPS:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2h58m51.s |
| 2 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8.941s |
| 3 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 10.372s |
| 4 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 12.473s |
| 5 | Carl Edwards | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 12.871s |
| 6 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 13.503s |
| 7 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 14.497s |
| 8 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 15.194s |
| 9 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 16.120s |
| 10 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 18.147s |
| 11 | Tony Stewart | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 21.334s |
| 12 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 21.906s |
| 13 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 23.300s |
| 14 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 25.139s |
| 15 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 25.343s |
| 16 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 25.594s |
| 17 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 27.643s |
| 18 | Casey Mears | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 28.914s |
| 19 | Kurt Busch | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 1 Lap |
| 20 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 1 Lap |
| 21 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | 1 Lap |
| 22 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 Lap |
| 23 | A.J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 1 Lap |
| 24 | Cole Whitt | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 1 Lap |
| 25 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 Lap |
| 26 | Clint Bowyer | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 1 Lap |
| 27 | Brett Moffitt | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 2 Laps |
| 28 | David Gilliland | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 3 Laps |
| 29 | Michael Annett | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 Laps |
| 30 | Matt DiBenedetto | BK Racing | Toyota | 3 Laps |
| 31 | Josh Wise | BK Racing | Toyota | 3 Laps |
| 32 | Ryan Preece | Phil Parsons Racing | Chevrolet | 4 Laps |
| 33 | Jeb Burton | BK Racing | Toyota | 5 Laps |
| 34 | B.J. McLeod | Circle Sport | Chevrolet | 7 Laps |
| 35 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Go FAS Racing | Ford | 8 Laps |
| 36 | Timmy Hill | Premium Motorsports | Ford | 16 Laps |
| 37 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 38 Laps |
| 38 | Landon Cassill | Hillman Smith Motorsports | Chevrolet | 58 Laps |
| 39 | Justin Allgaier | HScott Motorsports | Chevrolet | Accident |
| 40 | Danica Patrick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Chevrolet | Accident |
| 41 | David Ragan | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | Accident |
| 42 | Alex Bowman | Tommy Baldwin Racing | Chevrolet | Accident |
| 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | Accident |
CHASE STANDINGS:
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matt Kenseth | 2099 |
| 2 | Denny Hamlin | 2093 |
| 3 | Joey Logano | 2089 |
| 4 | Carl Edwards | 2089 |
| 5 | Jimmie Johnson | 2083 |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | 2074 |
| 7 | Kurt Busch | 2073 |
| 8 | Brad Keselowski | 2072 |
| 9 | Martin Truex Jr. | 2071 |
| 10 | Jeff Gordon | 2068 |
| 11 | Jamie McMurray | 2058 |
| 12 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 2057 |
| 13 | Kyle Busch | 2056 |
| 14 | Paul Menard | 2056 |
| 15 | Kevin Harvick | 2034 |
| 16 | Clint Bowyer | 2018 |
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