Denny Hamlin reveals how he ‘forced’ William Byron to surrender the Michigan victory

Denny Hamlin pulled off a fuel mileage masterclass to outlast William Byron in the closing stages at the Michigan International Speedway. The Joe Gibbs driver has revealed how he 'forced' Bryon to give up his fight by burning up more fuel than he could spare.

Byron had dominated most of the FireKeepers Casino 400, leading a race-best 98 of the 200 laps. However, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was radioed about a possible fuel shortage near the end of the race. Hamlin, meanwhile, who'd chased down the field and piled on the pressure right behind Byron's No.54 Chevy, was told he was well in the clear for fuel.

The two drivers were battling for the lead with four laps remaining when Hamlin finally got past on the inside of turn 3. The HMS driver's fuel shortage was evident when he immediately pitted for fuel on the penultimate lap, leading to a 28th-place finish for the championship leader.

In an episode of Hamlin's podcast, Actions Detrimental, he explained the tactical approach that helped him overcome Byron.

"He made it difficult but I thought that since I got there with 10,12 to go, it was going to be difficult for him to hold us off for that long," he said (via X/Dirty Mo Media).

"I'd never wanted to assume he was going to run out of gas. And even as his crew chief said, 'run it all out here, you gotta keep the lead'. We forced him to use more gas than what he was budgeting," he added.

Denny Hamlin clinched the race win despite leading only five laps throughout the race. This marks his third win of the season and the 57th of his career. Notably, it was also his 701st Cup Series start.

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Denny Hamlin addresses whether a slow pitstop gave him a fuel advantage at Michigan

Denny Hamlin's win at the Michigan International Speedway has raised questions about whether his slow pit stop during the final stage actually played to his advantage. The star driver saw several cars pass him on pit road when he experienced a sluggish halt on lap 149.

He came off the pits 11th in the running order, but many speculate the added time spent refueling may have helped him take on more fuel than his competition, resulting in the race win.

Reflecting upon the same, Hamlin said (via YouTube/Actions Detrimental, 26:27 onwards):

"We were full. I think we only took one tank or one can. Was the blunder allowed us to get a little more fuel? I don't know that....But certainly when you have a slower stop, that's more time that you're plugged in to the car."

"He [Byron] had like a 91 stop. Yeah, I mean, you're lucky to get in one can at that point," he added.

Denny Hamlin wasn't totally in the clear as well. He ran out of gas while doing his celebratory burnouts after the race win, and his car had to be towed to Victory Lane as a result.