What happened
On Lap 263, with five laps remaining, Denny Hamlin hit the outside wall at Homestead-Miami Speedway and dropped to 6th. Hamlin said crew chief Chris Gayle had told him he needed to win, and he tried to reach the outside while chasing the lead.
What it cost
Hamlin had been running 3rd behind Tyler Reddick and William Byron before the contact. He finished 6th, leaving him with a loss of three positions from the wall strike.
What could have been done differently
Hamlin should have kept the car below the wall and preserved his momentum through the corner. He acknowledged he could not hold the outside line he tried to reach.