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Bass Pro Shops Night Race highlights: Denny Hamlin wins; Harvick among eliminated
The NASCAR Cup Series' 10-race playoff schedule continued Saturday with Denny Hamlin winning the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
NASCAR's top stars battled it out over three stages and 500 laps in Bristol, Tennessee in the final race of the round of 16. Four were eliminated from further playoff contention on Saturday, with Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Ricky Stenhouse and Michael McDowell being the four who won't move on to the next round. Martin Truex Jr. and Bubba Wallace advanced to the next round by just a few points each.
William Byron, Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Chris Buescher, Tyler Reddick, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, and Brad Keselowski also advanced to the next round.
You can find a full list of winners so far this year, as well as the season's remaining schedule here.
Here are the highlights!
Going green
Early crash
Austin Cindric's car got some early damage after colliding with AJ Allmendinger.
Harvick falling behind
It wasn't a good first stage for Harvick, who fell as low as 28th place in the race. Harvick entered the race in 12th place in the standings, so falling that far behind would almost assuredly eliminate him from the playoffs.
Stage 1 goes to Christopher Bell
Bell, who entered the race in 10th in the playoff standings, picked up a key early-stage win while Bubba Wallace also picked up eight early points, entering the race 19 points behind the mark he needed to be at to advance.
Rain delay
Drivers were brought to the pit in lap 138 due to rain. Bell still sat in front at the time of the stoppage.
Back on!
The race continued after a relatively brief delay, with Bell still holding onto his lead through the first 150 laps.
Logano struggling
Logano fell into 31st in lap 229, getting lapped by Bell as he was clinging onto a spot in the next round by five points.
Ring the Bell again
Bell took home Stage 2 of the race, holding the lead at the halfway mark of the 500-lap race.
Clinched
Byron and Hamlin don't have to sweat the rest of the race. Both drivers earned enough points in first two stages to clinch a spot in the final 12 of the playoffs.
Logano crashes, ending his day and possibly the playoff for him
A three-driver crash in the early part of Stage 3 spelled bad news for Logano, whose car got wrecked on the back driver's side. Logano had to depart the race, and after his poor start, he likely won't have enough points to move on in the playoff.
Corey LaJoie and Ryan Newman were also involved in the wreck. However, LaJoie remained in the race following the crash.
Truex in trouble
The No. 19 car slowed down as the race entered its final quarter, causing a caution as Truex needed time to meet minimum speed. Truex held just a four-point advantage for the final spot for the next round after the caution.
More clinching
Following his strong start to the race, Bell clinched a spot to advance to the next round of the playoff. Keselowski, who held a spot in the top 10 entering the final 100 laps, also clinched a spot.
Hamlin holding onto lead
Hamlin was just a smidge in front of Larson as the race entered its final 50 laps.
Down to the wire
With Truex barely hanging onto a playoff spot, Wallace was also able to sneak into one of the final spots late. Both were holding spots by just a few points ahead of Logano and Harvick.
Hamlin wins!
Hamlin came away victorious on Saturday, winning at Bristol for the third time in his career.
He also had fun with the fans, who didn't seem to be excited with him winning.
PRE-RACE
Setting the stage
Ahead of the action, FOX Sports' Bob Pockrass broke down what and who to watch out for in Saturday's race.
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