Denny Hamlin wins Cracker Barrel 400 from Nashville Superspeedway in NASCAR Cup Series shootout

Denny Hamlin got the best of teammates Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe in a last-lap thriller, taking home the Cracker Barrel 400 from Nashville Superspeedway Sunday night. After a weather delay pushed the start of the race, things went late into the night.

Denny Hamlin started on the pole, but faced an early penalty which moved him to the back of the field early. After a string of cautions, AJ Allmendinger found himself at the front of the pack and held off Kyle Larson for the Stage One win after staying out.

Stage Two also saw a late caution make drivers choose a strategy, allowing Daniel Suarez to take the green checkered flag. By the end of the stage, the race had already made history with the most lead changes in a Cup Series race at Nashville.

The final stage of the race saw three Joe Gibbs Racing teammates run out front during a long-run which led to green-flag stops which forced them to chase down a group led by Zane Smith attempting to run long. A late caution allowed them to rerack for a thriller to the line.

NASCAR Cup Series

The NASCAR season continues this week with points on the line, as the All-Star Race opened the unofficial back-half of the year. With 33 races scheduled for the Cup Series this season, there are sure to be plenty of twists and turns over the coming months as drivers move up and down the standings following each race.

Tyler Reddick currently leads the Cup Series standings to this point, taking the checkered flag five times to start the season. His 23XI owner Denny Hamlin entered the weekend in second with Ryan Blaney in third.

No longer looking to make a playoff bracket down the final stretch of the season with cut races, NASCAR has adopted the Chase system for this season. In the Cup Series, that means 16 drivers battling from Race 27 on for the championship.