Michael McDowell was leading coming to the start-finish-line during the GEICO 500, but he ended up wrecking the field on the final lap at Talladega.
Denny Hamlin was watching with a keen eye, and he tried to figure out if there was a way the No. 34 could’ve taken the checkered flag. During the latest episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin elaborated on how McDowell could’ve successfully held on to the victory over the weekend.
“So the only way he could have defended this, is to backup heavily to the No. 6, when the No. 6 started backing off of him. He should have backed up heavily to the No. 6. And that would have caused some sort of stack up off the turn four, where they probably would have jumped to the outside of the No. 6, and then the No. 34 can then bounce between the two lanes to keep his his position,” Hamlin stated. “But it’s just a hard, it’s a hard track to defend. That it’s so wide, it’s extremely difficult. That’s why we’ve seen so many crashes in the tri-oval, while they’re at this track. So he’s just in a tough spot.”
While Hamlin had his own thoughts, it’s obvious he recognizes the difficulty of the situation for McDowell. The No. 34 ended up throwing one too many blocks, and it ended his afternoon on a whimper, along with many other of his peers.
Looking at the situation as a whole, Hamlin contemplated whether you’d want to be leading coming to the line, or if you’re better off coming from behind with the race in the balance.
“Yeah, you always think about, ‘Well, I want to be leading on the last lap.’ I mean, I don’t know. Do you? Do you not? It’s just a tough spot to be in,” Hamlin added. “He’s knows that this is a big opportunity for him and his team. And you’re probably right, he’s thinking that blockings going to be the best chance for him to win. If you slow the game down, though, and think about it, it’s like, I don’t know. Maybe letting the car get beside you is not the end of the world. Maybe you have a chance.
“I mean hell, because besides you then, hook a damn left on them. Send them to the infield. S—, I don’t know. But certainly, they didn’t get the finish they were hoping for. Man, it crashed a s— ton of cars.”
It worked out for Denny Hamlin, as his 23XI Racing team ended up in victory lane, but Michael McDowell and company are certainly wondering what could’ve been at the moment, and what the No. 34 could’ve done different.
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