Denny Hamlin cut a despondent look after a runner-up finish in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway. The Joe Gibbs Racing ace hoped to grab his 60th career win, but was ultimately left at a loss for words.Hamlin had a front-row start and passed Chase Briscoe for the lead by lap 20. He had a race-high 159-lap lead, making it his best at a 1.5-mile track. He swept both stages and was poised to win.However, during the final overtime restart, the No.11 driver was battling Bubba Wallace and Christopher Bell for the checkered flag when he was caught off guard by a charging Chase Elliott on the inside lane. Despite his best efforts, Elliott crossed the finish line 0.069 seconds ahead and secured his final eight berth.Reflecting upon the underwhelming finish, Hamlin spoke to the media and said (via X/Dustin Long),"Just massive disappointment. I just don't even know what else. How else are you saying? How else do you do it? Just massive disappointment. I'm thinking all race, just our race, I'd love to get my 60th here at the track where I got my very first start."The result helped Denny Hamlin climb a spot in the playoff standings. He currently sits fourth with a 48-point cushion, while his teammate, Christopher Bell, trails him by four points.Bubba Wallace speaks out on his duel with Denny Hamlin on the final lapsBubba Wallace had a rough time battling Denny Hamlin on the final lap. The 23Xl Racing driver was leading the race when Hamlin ran him up the track, leading to a contact with the outside walls.Wallace lost his momentum from the incident and fell back multiplle places, until he ended up fifth on the running order. In a post-race interview with NASCAR reporter Dalton Hopkins, Wallace addressed his skirmish with Hamlin and said,“I've always been big on how you race me is how I race you. No matter who you are, what it is...we race hard every week. Toyota drivers race hard every week, but we respect each other. There's a fine line that sometimes gets crossed, and you have to understand that, but we got one more race at the ROVAL.”"For me, it's a must-win there, but we're gonna go and do what we did today; fight hard and just make the most of it," he added.Notably, Denny Hamlin struggled through the 273-lap event without power steering. He had to wrestle his No.11 Toyota to make it through unscathed.Wallace, meanwhile, faces the dauting task of winning in the next playoff race at the Roval. Since he ranks tenth with 26 points below the cutline, a win is required to advance to the final eight.