Denny Hamlin WINS race across the country to go 2-for-2 in Richmond

RICHMOND, Virginia (AP) — make it two WINS in two nights of Denny Hamlin (FSY) at his home track. By John Harrelson, Getty Images for NASCAR

Denny Hamlin took 199 251 laps to win the Nationwide Series race in his hometown track in Richmond, Virginia

By John Harrelson, Getty Images for NASCAR

Denny Hamlin took 199 251 laps to win the Nationwide Series race in his hometown track in Richmond, Virginia

Hamlin grabbed the lead for the first 44 laps of time for the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Richmond International Raceway on Friday night and dominated the rest of the 250-lap race.He lost the lead briefly when he pitted under green flag again when Aric Almirola (FSY) got underneath after you restart the first, and then he grabbed back six laps later for good.The victory was the 11th career Hamlin in the Nationwide Series and came a night after he passed Kyle Busch (FSY) on the last lap to win his race for charity at the track.After arriving in Richmond 17TH in points in the Sprint Cup Series and hoping to jump start its season, Hamlin said he expects the momentum of two victories mean the start of something. "It is a big snowball is rolling and rolling, he said. "I hope it keeps going."Unlike charity race, in which Hamlin required all 75 laps to rally starting on the back of the field, he was 11th on the grid and had huge leads most of the night.But as Busch, who ran out of gas before arrival Thursday, Hamlin was severing close, prompting the head of team Adam Stevens to beg him to save fuel as he sought his first victory. "It is difficult to tell a driver, ' Slow down! Slow down! ' "Hamlin said.Is completely outside our mentality, but he had a plan. He knew that we were right there in number. I had a feeling that we were going to make it. I felt very confident, but dude, it's great to win again in Richmond ".He took 199 of 251 laps and made it look too easy whenever he had the chance.When Kelly Bires (FSY) spun in turn 4 wall for the first caution on lap 124, Hamlin was leading by eight seconds. And when he opened a lead of almost six seconds over Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (FSY) with fewer than 30 laps, Hamlin was able to try to save fuel to make it to the checkered flag.Stenhouse, however, took the second caution when he ran out of gas on lap 243, and when Almirola was also without gas behind it, Hamlin opted to pit to be safe.On the restart on lap 250, he'd Paul Menard (FSY) behind him, followed by points leader Justin Allgaier (FSY). Hamlin easily won Menard in the first round in green and was crossing when a crash in the fourth turn brought another caution, clinching the victory of Hamlin.Com only three cars on the lead lap, Menard said he was "just going to bomb it into a" trying to pass Hamlin on the last lapbut prudence took this option. "He just had a better resume than I do, basically," Menard said about Hamlin, adding that he was not so sure that would have lasted Hamlin had fuel race ended without care.It was the second victory on the track of the native of Chesterfield 15 miles from his hometown.Menard was second, followed by Allgaier, Elliott Sadler (FSY) and Brad Keselowski (FSY). The five were the only cars on the lead lap finish, in part because Almirola, who crossed the finish line in fifth place, was penalized for speeding on pit road and dropped to 14 overall.Sadler, a native of Virginia, Emporia that never worked well on the track also considered his course of origin credited team owner Kevin Harvick (FSY) with giving him advice very helpful. "He said: ' look, this is what I want you to do, this is how I want you to be executed, that is what I want you to focus on ', and it saved my ass. I ran a lot better tonight, "said Sadler. Stenhouse, who shared the points lead with Allgaier coming race, ended at 21".We hated to see Ricky have trouble had tonight, "said Allgaier, who leads No. 2 Sadler by six points. "You never want to take something someone else's misfortune."