Once again, Hamlin falls short

Chesterfield native Denny Hamlin has his car serviced during an early pit stop in the Russ Friedman 400. A disastrous pit stop later dropped him from first to seventh.

Denny Hamlin did what 100,000 fans were unable to accomplish last night - he made a quick exit from Richmond International Raceway.

The Chesterfield native went another race without winning at his hometown track. This time, it was a pit stop disaster on the 274th lap, when a crew member fumbled the lugnuts on the right-front tire, costing Hamlin seven positions on the restart.

The pit crew knew the significance of the moment, slamming their helmets in disgust. This marked the second consecutive Richmond race where Hamlin was in charge of the race, then lost because of factors outside his control.

Last time around, it was a tire failure that cost him a race he was running away with.

He did not accompany his FedEx Toyota back to the trailer after the race, ditching it to make a quick exit from a waiting group of reporters.

In a postrace interview with the Times-Dispatch, crew chief Mike Ford had few words to say about an incident that visibly frustrated him.

"It just [stinks], dude," he said. "I can't say anything else."

Ford had been encouraging Hamlin after the incident. On the radio, he told Hamlin that he had the best car in the field, and it was going to be a matter of outrunning everybody else.

"Stay patient, you've got 86 laps to go and you've got better tires than most of those guys out there," he radioed. "And you can make it on fuel - many of them can't."

It was a comeback that never materialized, as Hamlin got caught in traffic trying to make a move, and got as high as sixth place before slowly falling back into the pack - ultimately crossing the line 14th.

Hamlin has won a Nationwide race at RIR, but the big prize continues to elude him. Tony Stewart had words of empathy for the driver - Stewart had a long dry spell in Indianapolis.

"You know it's frustrating for him, but the good thing is that he gets to try again in the fall," Stewart said. "I think last year was the ultimate heartbreaker. You don't run that good at a place here consistently without winning. He's going to win many races here."

Hamlin has acknowledged that his first RIR win will be a particularly sweet one - better than a Daytona 500 victory, he said Friday - but for now he knows only the agony of defeat at his hometown track.

"As a competitor, you can't let it go," Ford said. "You say you put it behind, but you never put it behind."