Denny Hamlin is 3/1 to win 2019 Ford Ecoboost 400

Denny Hamlin has won twice at Homestead.

Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Express Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:
Race: Ford EcoBoost 400
Date/Time: Sunday, Nov. 17/ 3:00 p.m. ET
Race Distance: 267 laps/400.5 miles
Track Shape: Oval
Track Length: 1.5 miles
Banking: 18-20 degrees
2018 Winner: Joey Logano

Express Notes:

Phoenix Recap: Denny Hamlin dominated Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Phoenix Raceway to clinch a berth in next weekend’s championship finale in the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Hamlin survived a late-race restart with three laps to go to capture his sixth victory of the season, crossing the finish line 0.377-seconds ahead of teammate Kyle Busch. Hamlin and Busch will race Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick for the championship next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Hamlin started third and worked his way to the lead at the end of Stage 1 to take the segment win. He was battling Busch and Joey Logano in points for the final Playoff transfer spots, and with both competitors earning stage points, Hamlin knew he had to win to advance. He finished second in Stage 2 and then lined up in that position alongside Logano for the final segment. Hamlin passed Logano on Lap 177 and opened up more than a 10-second lead on the field during a long green flag run. A late-race caution set up the final dash to the finish line. Hamlin now has six wins and 19 top-five finishes in 35 races this season.

Homestead Preview: The Series heads south for the final race of the 2019 season at Homestead-Miami Speedway where Denny Hamlin will be among the Championship 4 drivers competing for the Cup series trophy. Hamlin is a two-time winner at Homestead and is hoping to cap off an impressive season with his first-ever championship. In his last visit to Homestead, Hamlin qualified on the pole and went on to finish 12th.

Hamlin Statistics:
Track: Homestead-Miami Speedway
Races: 14
Wins: 2
Poles: 3
Top-5: 4
Top-10: 9
Laps Led: 254
Avg. Start: 19.9
Avg. Finish: 10.6

Hamlin Conversation – Homestead:

You’re coming off an impressive win at Phoenix and now getting ready for the championship race at Homestead. What can we expect from you and your team in Miami this weekend?

“The FedEx team brought me such a fast car in Phoenix. We know what we are capable of, and we showed that at ISM Raceway. Chris (Gabehart, crew chief) had these guys ready to go, and I just had to do my job. I’m excited for the opportunity in Miami to bring home a championship for our team and for FedEx.”

How do you plan to prepare for the final race of the season at Homestead?

“I know that this team will be ready for Sunday at Homestead. We have had a lot of success there in the past, and I know our FedEx team is up for another challenge. We just need to stay focused and continue to work like we’ve done all season long and good things will happen.”

FedEx Express Along for the Ride at Homestead: As the NASCAR season comes to a close and the championship title is determined, FedEx Express is recognizing the hard work and dedication of its everyday champions in the South Florida market by having the letters “SFL” on the B-post of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota at Homestead-Miami Speedway. FedEx Express thanks them for riding along with them during the 2019 season.

Kyle Busch is 14/5 to win 2019 Ford Ecoboost 400

KYLE BUSCH To the Victor Go the Spoils Kyle Busch is co-favorite to win championship. HUNTERSVILLE, North Carolina (Nov. 12, 2019) – The current elimination format of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs is down to the final weekend of its sixth season, and one thing has been clear during the format’s first five seasons of finales – to the victor go the spoils. While the rules state that simply the highest-finisher among the four championship-eligible drivers Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway will win this year’s title, it’s been proven thus far it’s about more than being the highest finisher, it’s a must-win situation. Joey Logano was the latest to win the finale at Homestead last season to clinch his first career championship. The winner-take-all scenario rang true as right behind the victorious Logano was fellow Championship 4 contender Martin Truex Jr. in the runner-up spot. Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M’S Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is a five-time race winner in 2019 and once again among this weekend’s Championship 4, accomplished the same feat in 2015 when he won the 400-mile season finale at Homestead to bring home his first Cup Series championship. Busch knows the task of winning at Homestead is a big one as he’ll compete primarily against JGR equipment with teammates Truex and Denny Hamlin also vying for the title Sunday. Kevin Harvick, the 2014 series champion, will be the lone driver from outside the JGR fold who will vie for the title in the one-race shootout for the Cup Series championship trophy Sunday afternoon in South Florida. Through this season’s first 35 races, Truex has finished best among the four title contenders 12 times, Busch 10 times, Hamlin seven times and Harvick six times. With three top-five finishes through this year’s nine playoff races, Busch knows he’ll likely need to find one more victory in order to become the 2019 Cup Series champion and bring home his second title. There have been 15 NASCAR Cup Series drivers who have won two or more championships since the sport was founded in 1959. Not only is Busch hoping to become the 16th on Sunday, so is Truex and Harvick. While Busch’s average finish of 17.4 at Homestead may not be his best, he has become strong and consistent on the 1.5-mile oval the past four seasons, bringing home three top-fives and four top-10s. His most impressive race at Homestead, of course, was his 2015 championship-winning effort, when he led six times for a total of 41 laps in the 400-mile race. So, as Busch heads to South Florida with everything on the line Sunday, the M&M’S driver and his team will most certainly be in must-win mode as it’s proven to be the only way to guarantee their second Cup Series championship and their membership in the multi-series championship club.

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 M&M'S Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing:

This is the first time a team has three drivers in the Championship 4. How are you going to handle this week?  Will you treat each other, share info, differently than you normally do? “We’ve done that in the past with Carl (Edwards) and myself. I wouldn’t imagine it would be any different now. It’s just a matter of all of us doing what we do throughout the week for preparation and everything, getting down there. Last year Martin (Truex Jr.) and myself were in. I guess he wasn’t really a teammate, but in reality they kind of still were. We worked together all the way to Sunday. They were really, really fast and better than us. Same with Carl. He was fast that year. Then in ’17, when (Truex) won, we were really fast, just didn’t have track position. I think Denny (Hamlin) said it best in the piece that we did for FOX last week, which was, once you start to kind of hold back anything, then that just can kind of snowball and be bad for everybody. I agree with him on that.” How do you go to Miami and do what this team hasn’t been able to do in the last 21 races? “Yeah, thanks for the reminder. Fight as hard as we can, do the best job we can, exactly what we did Sunday (at Phoenix) – we just weren’t good enough (to win). This week, we’ll just have to make sure that we are. Somehow, some way, if it works out, it was meant to be with our M&M’S Camry. If it doesn’t, then it’s not. Hopefully the sun will come up for another day.” How big is it to have a chance to win another championship? “It’s huge. It’s our opportunity to succeed and you know God’s given us every opportunity to go do that. Joe, Coy Gibbs, everybody on this Joe Gibbs Racing team, they’re phenomenal and I know we’ll all be trying our best remembering J.D. (Gibbs) and his legacy. Adam (Stevens, crew chief) and the guys had great racecars for me all season long and especially the last several weeks. We just haven’t gotten into victory lane. That’s what it’s likely going to take to win the championship on Sunday, so we’ll see if we can get it done.” How does it feel to be able to go and race for a championship at Homestead for a fifth year in a row? “It’s obviously a great opportunity to be able to go race for a championship, and that’s what this format is. It doesn’t mean a whole lot to make it to the Championship 4 if you don’t win it. You know, it’s all reset to zero. There are four of us who go for winner-take-all at Homestead. It means a lot to have that opportunity, not only for myself, but for M&M’S, Toyota, Interstate Batteries and everyone at JGR who helps us to be as good as we’ve been. It’s what your whole season comes down to. I’m looking forward to Homestead and we’ll see if we can bring home another championship.” From your recent experience, how has Homestead changed over the last several years? “The track seems to have aged a little more and maybe the tire compound could use a little bit of help to be better there, just because we’ve run the same one, I think now, three or four years. The tire compound is fine – it’s not that big of a deal. Definitely a lot of grip for the first few laps, and then it really tapers off and then everybody is running up next to the fence. I think that’s what we saw in years past. As it did get darker, the track seemed to widen out. It’s just during the day, when it’s hot out and it’s slick out, that the best you can do is run right next to the wall. As the nighttime comes, you can start moving around a little bit more. It’s definitely still a racey joint, but track temperatures are very conducive to that. Our M&M’S Camry was pretty good the last couple of years, but we would like to be able to go back to Homestead and do what we did there in 2015.”

Odds to win 2019 Ford Ecoboost 400 at Homestead

Martin Truex Jr. won 2017 title at Homestead.

WESTGATE LAS VEGAS SUPERBOOK

ODDS TO WIN 2019 FORD ECOBOOST

HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2019 - 3:15 PM ET

Martin TRUEX JR 11/4
Kyle BUSCH 11/4
Kevin HARVICK 3/1
Denny HAMLIN 3/1
Kyle LARSON 8/1
Joey LOGANO 25/1
Brad KESELOWSKI 30/1
Chase ELLIOTT 50/1
Erik JONES 60/1
Kurt BUSCH 60/1
Ryan BLANEY 60/1
Alex BOWMAN 60/1
William BYRON 80/1
Clint BOWYER 100/1
Aric ALMIROLA 200/1
Daniel SUAREZ 200/1
Jimmie JOHNSON 200/1
Ryan NEWMAN 500/1
Ricky STENHOUSE JR 500/1
Austin DILLON 500/1
Paul MENARD 1000/1
Matt DiBENEDETTO 1000/1
Chris BUESCHER 1000/1
Daniel HEMRIC 5000/1
Ryan PREECE 5000/1
Ty DILLON 5000/1
Darrell WALLACE JR 5000/1
Michael McDOWELL 5000/1
David RAGAN 5000/1
John Hunter NEMECHEK 10000/1
Corey LAJOIE 10000/1
Landon CASSILL 10000/1
Reed SORENSON 10000/1
FIELD (all others) 2000/1

Homestead Betting Preview: 2018 Ford EcoBoost 400

Kyle Busch and Martin Truex jr going for second title.

It's been a long ride on the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season, and now the sun is setting. Sunday's Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway is race No. 36, the 10th of the Playoffs and 11th on a 1.5-mile track.

The Playoffs began 10 weeks ago in Las Vegas and now we finally have our Championship 4. There are no carryover points from previous races. Whoever has the best finish Sunday wins the season championship and the past four seasons have seen the eventual champion win at Homestead and three of those drivers are looking for another championship Sunday.

Kevin Harvick won the 2014 Homestead race to seal his first career title and Las Vegan Kyle Busch also did it in 2015 for his first. Last season, Martin Truex Jr. completed the double for his first title. Those three drivers have been called the Big-3 all season long. They were supposed to be here. The driver looking for his first championship is Joey Logano who has twice been in the Championship 4.

The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook adjusted its championship odds with Busch and Harvick co-favorites at 11/5, Truex next at 11/4 odds and Logano with the longest odds at 7/2. The reason the odds are the way they are is far deeper than Busch and Harvick each winning a series-high eight races and Truex winning the next most with four wins. It's more about the type of track.

There are more races on 1.5-mile tracks than any other type and Harvick won four of the 10 so far this season, Busch won three of them and Truex won one. Logano's two wins on the season came at Talladega where almost any driver can win and the other was on Martinsville's half-mile layout. He's had good runs lately on the 1.5s, such as leading 54 laps and finishing third at Texas two weeks ago, a race won by Harvick who led a race-high 177 laps.

“Well, it’s exciting for us, I think, to be in this position again,” said Truex. “This is our third trip to Homestead in four years, which I think is something we’re all really proud of as a group, and obviously going to be our last race together as a complete group, it’s definitely going to be a special weekend.

“You know, all we can do is prepare the best we can and do the same thing that we’ve done down there before and just try our best. That’s all you can do at the end of the day. We’ve got a great team. It’s been an amazing, amazing ride together, and hopefully, we can get down there next week and make our owners proud and just live up to our potential.”

Can you imagine a team closing shop after winning back-to-back titles? That's John Elway-type of stuff right there. The SuperBook has Truex 6/1 to win. Harvick and Busch are co-favorites to win the race at 11/4 odds.

One variable to be considered when betting on Harvick is that crew chief Rodney Childers was suspendedfor the final two races of the season for creative engineering (cheating) and Tony Gibson has taken over the duties. Imagine being suddenly told you're in charge of the two most important races of the season.

“Yeah, it was a pretty nerve?racking deal there for sure," Gibson said of taking over crew chief duties. "My biggest deal, like I said before, is just making sure that we take each practice ?? the inspection process we all know is pretty intense, so making sure that stuff flows good and we get through there safe and sound, and then we’ll take each practice just like we did Phoenix. We took each practice, each run one at a time, thought about changes and what we needed to do, and like I said, Rodney had a great plan laid out, and we kind of just followed his lead through that. He has an awesome race team. They all pretty much know what to do. You don’t have to tell them what to do."

I really don't think it matters who's on the pit box making calls. As Gibson said, these guys know what has to be done.

All the 1.5-mile tracks have their own unique traits and Homestead's layout is different from all of them with progressive banking up to 20 degrees around the turns of a paperclip shape. All the other 1.5s are on D-shaped tri-ovals. But the thing that matters most is the distance and the banking making most of them set-up similarly.

“I feel like we’ve got as good an opportunity as anybody," said Logano's crew chief Todd Parrot. "If you look back, the thing I would build off of is we led over 100 laps at Kansas at a progressively banked racetrack that’s similar banking to what Homestead is, not a high?falloff racetrack, but it was a good place for us. We lost some track position and really didn’t recover from that to finish the way I think we could have, but we had a great run there, and I think at Texas, the 4 car was dominant at Texas, but beyond the 4 car, I thought we were as good as anybody and finished third there. Our mile?and?a?half program I think through the summertime was lacking speed, and we just needed to understand how to make our race cars faster. Setup wise and everything. And I think we’ve continued to understand what we need to do to make ourselves faster, and we’re working on that, and I think through the last two mile?and?a?halfs we’ve had speed. We’ve been competitive."

Yes, they've been very competitive lately on 1.5s. In addition to Logano's nice runs at Texas two weeks ago, he led a race-high 100 laps at Kansas and finished eighth in October and before that he led 46 laps at Las Vegas to kick off the Playoffs and finished fourth. Still, no wins on the 1.5s this season for Logano.

Recent history also shows that those who do well in the first 10 races on 1.5s do just as well at Homestead in the finale. Last season Truex won seven of the 11 races on 1.5s closing out with a Homestead win. In 2016 Jimmie Johnson had won two of the 10 races before winning at Homestead for his first career win there in what would be his seventh championship. The Big-3 will have an edge at Homestead, but Logano isn't far behind. It wouldn't be a surprise to see all four finish in the top-five.

Of course, there will be 35 others drivers trying to close their season out with a win. Denny Hamlin and Johnson have won at least one race a season for their entire Cup careers and Homestead is their last chance to keep it alive. For Johnson, this will be his last race with Lowe's as a sponsor on the hood as well as last race with Chad Knaus as crew chiefs. He's been with both since his rookie year in 2002.

"Man, I want to win this year. I want to win with Lowe’s on the car and I want to win with (No. 48 team crew chief) Chad (Knaus)," Johnson said. "So, that’s our top priority. Seeing that (rookie) paint scheme is going to trigger emotions from myself and I’m sure our fans. So many good years with that paint scheme and victories and such. I think this weekend’s definitely going to be an emotional one.”

If liking Johnson's chances the SuperBook has posted his odds at 80/1 to win, which is the largest number the seven-time champion has ever had at Homestead.

In 2013, Hamlin won the finale at Homestead to keep his streak alive and he's 20/1 to win his first race of the season on Sunday. He also won there in 2009 and has a solid 10.4 average finish in 13 starts.

Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski each won on a 1.5-mile track this season and will be battling amongst the Championship 4 for the win. Elliott is 20/1 and Keselowski is 15/1, which are both attractive numbers despite a Championship 4 driver winning at Homestead the past four years. Hamlin's 2013 win was the last driver to win at Homestead and not win the title.

And then there's Kyle Larson who seems to be 8/ to win each week because of being respected by the sports books, but he has yet to win in 2018. The SuperBook has him at 3/1 this week, crazy. However, Homestead is a really good track for him -- top-five in his last three starts there.
READ MORE HERE....TOP-5 FINISH PREDICTION ON VEGASINSIDER.COM

Odds to win 2018 Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead

Martin Truex Jr is going for back-to-back championships.

WESTGATE LAS VEGAS SUPERBOOK
ODDS TO WIN 2018 FORD ECOBOOST 400
HOMESTEAD-MIAMI SPEEDWAY
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2018 - 2:35 PM PT

Kevin HARVICK 11/4
Kyle BUSCH 11/4
Kyle LARSON 3/1
Martin TRUEX JR 6/1
Joey LOGANO 10/1
Brad KESELOWSKI 15/1
Chase ELLIOTT 20/1
Denny HAMLIN 20/1
Clint BOWYER 25/1
Kurt BUSCH 25/1
Erik JONES 30/1
Aric ALMIROLA 40/1
Ryan BLANEY 40/1
Austin DILLON 80/1
Jimmie JOHNSON 80/1
Daniel SUAREZ 100/1
Alex BOWMAN 100/1
Ricky STENHOUSE JR 200/1
Jamie McMURRAY 300/1
Paul MENARD 300/1
Ryan NEWMAN 500/1
William BYRON 500/1
Matt KENSETH 500/1
TY DILLON 1000/1
AJ ALLMENDINGER 1000/1
Chris BUESCHER 1000/1
Michael McDOWELL 2000/1
Darrell WALLACE JR 2000/1
Regan SMITH 5000/1
FIELD (all others) 1000/1

Images from 2017 Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway

Matt kenseth and dale Earnhardt Jr came into Cup Series in 2000 and they made car look the same as then for Homestead.

Seem just like yesterday when Dale Jr. was teaching a rookie named Truex Jr how to race Talladega on X-Box. 

Danica Patrick, please go get some more sponsor money and give it another shot. Don't walk away, or quit it.  

It seems like yesterday when these two were rookies, now they're leaving. Hate it!

Not to take anything away from Truex, but if a sign needed there's too many 1.5s in playoffs, he's it. diverse tracks, please.

Truex had a margin of victory over runner-up Kyle Busch of 0.681 seconds. 

Two-time Homestead winner Denny Hamlin started from the pole and finished ninth.

Martin Truex Jr. wins at Homestead and 2017 NASCAR Cup Championship

Crew Chief Cole Pearn and Martin Truex Jr put together an epic run on 1.5-mile tracks in 2017.

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – At the end of a riveting, breathtaking battle that had fans in the grandstands on their feet long after the checkered flag, Martin Truex Jr. held off Kyle Busch by .681 seconds at Homestead-Miami Speedway to win Sunday’s Ford Eco-Boost 400 and his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title.

In Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s last race in the No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, Truex—one of Earnhardt’s closest friends—kept Busch behind him during a 34-lap green-flag run to the finish.

"It’s just overwhelming," a tearful Truex said in Victory Lane. "To think about all the rough days and bad days, the days that we couldn’t run 20th, to be here—I never thought this day would come, and to be here is so unbelievable."

The victory was a timely gift for Furniture Row Racing owner Barney Visser, who is back home in Denver, Colo., recovering from a heart attack and subsequent bypass surgery. It was also a gift to Truex’s long-time girlfriend Sherry Pollex, who has been battling ovarian cancer.

"A lot of it was for her," said Truex, who won for the first time at Homestead and the 15th time in his career. "A lot of it was for me. A lot of it was for this team – just, I don’t even know what to say. We just never gave up all day long. We didn’t have the best car. I don’t know how we won that thing. Never give up. Dig deep."

The victory also was entirely appropriate. For the bulk of the season, Truex was the top driver in the series. Sunday’s victory was his eighth of the year, a series-best, and his seventh on 1.5-mile intermediate speedways. Truex had the No. 78 Toyota out front for 78 laps on Sunday, bringing his season total of laps led to a career-best 2,253, also tops in the series.

With an excellent long-run car, Busch slipped to fourth after the final restart on Lap 234 of 267 and needed nine laps to pass the stubborn No. 22 Ford of Joey Logano. Seven laps later, Busch slipped past fellow Championship 4 contender Kevin Harvick into second and set his sights on Truex.

Busch closed rapidly, but Truex found a line that allowed him to maintain an edge that shrank to as little as two car lengths. But Busch never could pull alongside his fellow Camry driver, and Truex inched away over the last four circuits.

"I told my guys we were going to dig deeper than we ever have today, and (with) 20 (laps) to go, I thought I was done – they were all better than me on the long run all day long," Truex said. "I just found a way. I found a lane that I could use, and I found a lane that was blocking enough of their air that they couldn’t use it and just made it happen.

"I can’t believe it. I’ve wanted this since I was a little kid and just never give up. Just never give up on your dreams, no matter what happens and what kind of crap you go through. And thank you, Barney. I wish you were here, buddy."

Kyle Larson finished third, closely trailing the championship battle after moving past Harvick for third on Lap 252. Harvick came home fourth, after debris from David Starr’s Chevrolet punched a hole in the nose of the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.

"I was just really loose the whole last run," Harvick said. "When it started to get dark, we started to get tight in the corner, and then we got a hole in the nose. We got that fixed and just couldn’t quite get it where we needed to be to make good times.

"Some runs we fell off. Some runs we were tight on entry. There at the end we were just too loose."

Chase Elliott and Joey Logano ran fifth and sixth, respectively. Playoff driver Brad Keselowski finished sixth, ending the season fourth in the series standings.

Busch opted for a one-pit-stop strategy during the final stage of the race and appeared headed for the title until his brother, Kurt Busch, spun in Turn 4 on Lap 227 to bring out the fifth and final caution of the event and bunch the field for the restart on Lap 234.

"Yeah, it wasn't quite what we wanted there at the end," Busch said. "I thought we had a really great race car. Especially on the long runs, we were really, really good. Just came down to there at the end, not having enough tire when I got to the 78.

"So I just overused my stuff, and I knew I overused my stuff when I was running with the 22 (Logano) trying to get by him and just overworked everything, and got to the 4 (Harvick), got by him pretty quick. I tried to make sure that I could do that pretty quick so then I could have at least a little more tire life, but didn't seem to pay me off any when I got to the 78."

Notes: Earnhardt finished 25th in his final run in the No. 88 Chevy… Danica Patrick cut a tire and clobbered the Turn 2 wall on Lap 142 in her final trip in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. She plans to race in the Cup series for the final time in the 2018 Daytona 500… Patrick also collected Kasey Kahne in her wreck. Kahne ran his final race for Hendrick Motorsports on Sunday and will move to the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Chevrolet next season… Truex’s teammate, Erik Jones, was crowned Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the series after finishing 21st. Jones will take Matt Kenseth’s place in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs racing Toyota next season. Kenseth finished eighth Sunday in his final ride in the car.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Race - Ford EcoBoost 400

Homestead-Miami Speedway

Homestead, Florida

Sunday, November 19, 2017

               1. (2) Martin Truex Jr. (P), Toyota, 267.

               2. (3) Kyle Busch (P), Toyota, 267.

               3. (7) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 267.

               4. (9) Kevin Harvick (P), Ford, 267.

               5. (18) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 267.

               6. (19) Joey Logano, Ford, 267.

               7. (5) Brad Keselowski (P), Ford, 267.

               8. (4) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 267.

               9. (1) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 267.

               10. (21) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 267.

               11. (17) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 267.

               12. (16) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 267.

               13. (13) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 266.

               14. (26) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 266.

               15. (6) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 266.

               16. (15) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 265.

               17. (30) David Ragan, Ford, 265.

               18. (20) Aric Almirola, Ford, 265.

               19. (12) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 265.

               20. (29) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 265.

               21. (14) Erik Jones #, Toyota, 265.

               22. (8) Kurt Busch, Ford, 265.

               23. (28) Landon Cassill, Ford, 265.

               24. (23) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 265.

               25. (24) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 264.

               26. (32) Ty Dillon #, Chevrolet, 264.

               27. (22) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 264.

               28. (33) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 264.

               29. (11) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 264.

               30. (31) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 263.

               31. (34) Corey LaJoie(i), Toyota, 261.

               32. (36) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet, 259.

               33. (27) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, Accident, 234.

               34. (10) Daniel Suarez #, Toyota, Brakes, 225.

               35. (37) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, Engine, 212.

               36. (38) * David Starr(i), Chevrolet, Brakes, 175.

               37. (25) Danica Patrick, Ford, Accident, 139.

               38. (39) * Ray Black II(i), Chevrolet, Too Slow, 49.

               39. (35) * Joey Gase(i), Toyota, Accident, 4.

Average Speed of Race Winner:  131.9 mph.

Time of Race:  3 Hrs, 02 Mins, 11 Secs. Margin of Victory:  0.681 Seconds.

Caution Flags:  5 for 26 laps.

Lead Changes:  13 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders:    0; M. Truex Jr. (P) 1-12; K. Larson 13-82; B. Keselowski (P) 83; K. Larson 84-121; K. Busch (P) 122-123; K. Larson 124-145; K. Busch (P) 146; K. Larson 147-161; M. Truex Jr. (P) 162-175; K. Busch (P) 176; M. Truex Jr. (P) 177; K. Busch (P) 178-216; M. Truex Jr. (P) 217-267.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led):  K. Larson 4 times for 145 laps; M. Truex Jr. (P) 4 times for 78 laps; K. Busch (P) 4 times for 43 laps; B. Keselowski (P) 1 time for 1 lap.

Stage #1 Top Ten: 42,2,18,4,78,24,41,11,22,14

Stage #2 Top Ten: 42,78,4,18,2,41,20,22,24,11

Homestead-Miami Speedway NASCAR Cup Series Notes: 2017 Ford EcoBoost 400

Martin Truex Jr is favored to win race and title at Homestead.

Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series

Championship Race: Ford EcoBoost 400

The Place: Homestead-Miami Speedway

The Date: Sunday, Nov. 19

The Time: 3 p.m. ET

TV: NBC, 2 p.m. ET

Tickets: NASCAR.com/tickets

Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Distance: 400.5 miles (267 laps), Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 80), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 160), Stage 3 (Ends on Lap 267)

By The Numbers: Homestead-Miami Speedway

1 – Tony Stewart is the only driver in series history to win at the famed 1.5-mile speedway in his first appearance (1999).

2 – Number of Coors Light poles at Homestead-Miami Speedway by the series leaders: Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards, Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne.

4 – Number of times the winner of the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway has won the title during the Playoff Era; including the last three seasons in the elimination-style format of the Playoffs (Tony Stewart, 2011; Kevin Harvick, 2014; Kyle Busch, 2015; Jimmie Johnson, 2016).

10 – Number of Playoff races at Homestead-Miami Speedway that were won by Playoff contenders; three times a non-Chase contender has won season finale: Greg Biffle (2004 and 2006) and Denny Hamlin (2013).     

12 – Number of different Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series winners at Homestead-Miami Speedway; led by Greg Biffle and Tony Stewart with three each.

13 – Number of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff races Homestead-Miami Speedway has hosted (2004-2016).

14 – The most cautions in a single Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (11/21/2004; the inaugural Playoff race in Miami)

14 – Number of different Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light pole winners at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

15 – The worst finish by the eventual series champion in a Playoffs race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (it happened three times: Tony Stewart in 2005, Jimmie Johnson in 2008 and Brad Keselowski in 2012). 

18 – Total number of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races held at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

18-20 – The degrees of banking in all four turns of Homestead-Miami Speedway.

22 – The age of the youngest Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Award winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway: Joey Logano (11/18/2012 – 22 years, 5 months, 25 days).

24 – The age of the youngest Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway: Kurt Busch (11/17/2002 – 24 years, 3 months, 13 days).

26 – The most number of lead changes in a single race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (11/20/2011).

38 – The lowest starting position by a race winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Denny Hamlin, 2009).

46 – The age of the oldest Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Award and race winner at Homestead-Miami Speedway: Bill Elliott set both records in 2001 (11/11/2001 – 46 years, 1 month, 3 days).

67 – Total number of NASCAR national series races held at Homestead-Miami Speedway, second-most by a track in the state of Florida: MENCS (18), NXS (22) and NCWTS (21).

150.0 – The highest score in driver rating scale, considered a perfect performance, and has only been accomplished at Homestead-Miami Speedway once, in 2010 by Carl Edwards.

267 – Number of laps scheduled for this weekend’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

449 – Number of laps led at Homestead-Miami Speedway by the active series leader (Matt Kenseth, 17 starts).

Happy At Homestead: Recent Title-Clinching Performances

Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) will mark the conclusion of the 69th NASCAR season. Below are how the last seven season finales at Homestead-Miami Speedway turned out:

2010 – Jimmie Johnson Tracks Down Denny Hamlin For Fifth Straight Title

Denny Hamlin held a comfortable 15-point lead on Jimmie Johnson for the championship heading into the season finale. However, Hamlin could not close out the title. Hamlin damaged his Toyota with an early-race spin and finished 14th as a result. Kevin Harvick, who was third in points entering the race, finished third. Johnson placed runner-up to take home his fifth consecutive championship.

2011 – Tony Stewart Wins Third Championship In Epic Race

Trailing leader Carl Edwards by three points entering the 2011 finale, Tony Stewart virtually needed a win to capture the title – especially considering that Edwards ultimately finished runner-up in the race.

Stewart drove to the front from the back of the field twice and edged out Edwards to get to Victory Lane.

The pair finished the season tied in points, but Stewart held the tiebreaker over Edwards of most wins during the season (five to one).

2012 – Brad Keselowski Fends Off Jimmie Johnson For First Championship

Brad Keselowski entered the 2012 season finale 20 points ahead of second-place Jimmie Johnson in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series standings.

Keselowski, who won two Playoff races to help put himself in championship-clinching position, didn’t produce his best performance with a 15th-place showing.

But problems in the pits for Johnson caused the five-time champion to finish 36th and helped Keselowski secure his first championship, as well as the first title for Team Penske.

2013 – Jimmie Johnson Closes In On Earnhardt And Petty With Sixth Title

After building up his points lead on the strength of six wins, 16 top fives and 23 top 10s, Jimmie Johnson needed to finish 23rd to capture his sixth Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship.

Following an incident on a restart just shy of the 200-lap mark, Johnson ended up 23rd when it all sorted itself out.

By the end of the race, he worked his way up to finish ninth, earning Hendrick Motorsports a record 11th championship.

2014 – Harvick Rides To Two ‘Do Or Die’ Victories To Earn First Series Title

Kevin Harvick started the penultimate race of the 2014 season needing a win to get into the Championship 4 race at Phoenix. He dominated the contest, leading 264 laps to earn the victory and a spot in the Championship 4. After playing mind games throughout Homestead week with the rest of the field, Harvick held off runner-up Ryan Newman to earn his first career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title.

2015 – Kyle Busch Overcomes Injury For Improbable Comeback

Just ninth months after breaking his right leg and fracturing his left foot, Kyle Busch edged out defending champion Kevin Harvick for the Homestead race win and his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship. Busch missed the first 11 races of the season after sustaining his injuries in a crash in the season-opening race NASCAR XFINITY race at Daytona. He came back to win five races and cement his name in NASCAR history.

2016 – Johnson Ties Series Record With Seventh Championship

Jimmie Johnson proved once again to not count him out in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. He won his way into the Round of 8 with a victory at Charlotte, then took the checkered flag at Martinsville to punch his ticket to Homestead. He provided a walk-off win at Homestead to capture his seventh championship, tying Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series record.

A Spoiler At Homestead?

Under the “win and you’re in” elimination-style Playoff format, the eventual champion has won at Homestead the last three years (Kevin Harvick, 2014; Kyle Busch, 2015; Jimmie Johnson, 2016). Still, a driver out of championship contention can win the race. Below are some candidates:

Kyle Larson: Kyle Larson often calls Homestead-Miami Speedway his best track. The 25-year-old NASCAR Next alumnus finished runner-up at Homestead last year after leading a race-high 132 laps and placed fifth at the 1.5-mile track in 2015. Larson has had a breakout season in 2017, setting career highs in wins (four), top fives (14), top 10s (19) and average finish (13.6).

Matt Kenseth: Matt Kenseth, who’s likely competing in his final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race this weekend, spoiled Chase Elliott’s championship hopes last Sunday by winning an emotional race at Phoenix. He’ll try to finish his career on a high note by winning again at Homestead-Miami Speedway. In 17 starts at Homestead, Kenseth owns one win, four top-five and nine top-10 finishes. He has finished seventh or better in his last four starts at the South Florida track.

Denny Hamlin: Hamlin is a two-time winner at Homestead. In addition to his two wins, he has four top fives and eight top 10s, with 213 laps led. He was eliminated from the Playoffs at Phoenix due to a wreck, even though he led a race-high 193 laps.

Junior’s Final Ride

Dale Earnhardt Jr. will make what will likely be his final career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series start in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The 14-time Most Popular Driver hasn’t raced up to his standards in his final full-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, but will try to get one last win. He has struggled at Homestead throughout his career with only one top five, two top 10s and a 21.5 average finish in 16 starts at the 1.5-mile track.

Earnhardt enters the race weekend running as well as he’s had all season. He has finished in the top 11 in six out of his last seven races, including three seventh-place showings and a 10th-place result last Sunday at Phoenix.

For his career, the No. 88 Chevrolet driver has made 630 starts, won 26 races, logged 149 top fives, recorded 260 top 10s and posted a 15.8 average finish.

Earnhardt is a two-time Daytona 500 champion (2004, 2010).

Kenseth’s Swan Song

Dale Earnhardt Jr. isn’t the only driver likely competing in his final Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. 2003 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Matt Kenseth may compete in his final contest at Homestead.

Kenseth, who won at Phoenix last Sunday, will try to visit Victory Lane for the second consecutive week at Homestead where he owns one win, four top-five and nine top-10 finishes in 17 starts.

Heading into Sunday’s race, Kenseth claims 39 wins, 181 top fives and 326 top 10s in 649 career starts. He boasts a 14.1 career average finish.

Monster Energy Bellator MMA Fights

Before Sunday’s Championship 4 battle, fans at Homestead-Miami Speedway get to see another fight beginning at 11:30 a.m. – actually four fights – when the Monster Energy Bellator MMA Series returns to a NASCAR track for the fourth time this season. The fights will take place at the Monster Energy Fan Zone in the display area on the north side of the track. Admission to the event is free and open to fans.

In addition to the fights, fans will also have the opportunity to meet former world champ and Monster Energy athlete Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, as well as former PRIDE and STRIKEFORCE titleholder Dan “Hendo” Henderson, at the Monster Energy Fan Zone at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the display area on the north side of the track.