Dickies 500 results

When it comes to fuel mileage races, Denny Hamlin generally doesn’t have much success. That changed Sunday, though, as Hamlin played the gas game perfectly down the stretch and finished second. It marked his third top-five finish at TMS. "Obviously we gained some spots today on the fuel mileage thing and I felt like we had a really, really good car," Hamlin said.

Gordon misses out

Jeff Gordon knows a major opportunity to make a run at the championship slipped away Sunday. With Jimmie Johnson wrecking on Lap 3, the door was opened for Gordon to close the gap between himself and Johnson. It didn’t happen, though. Gordon, who won the pole, finished 13th and gained only 85 points on Johnson. "I am just really disappointed in this day," Gordon said. "A total missed opportunity. I’m just terrible at this place. I don’t know what it is."

Pending penalty for Truex?

NASCAR officials announced that Martin Truex Jr.’s car failed a post-race inspection after it was found to be "too low." Truex finished 14th after starting 27th.

Junior sighting

For a short period of time, Dale Earnhardt Jr. crept his way into the top-five. But, as it’s been the case all year, Earnhardt didn’t stay there very long, finishing 3 laps down in 25th. After making a pit stop for fuel with seven laps left, Earnhardt’s car stalled for several seconds. It eventually restarted.

Montoya caught up in wreck

Juan Pablo Montoya was one of several drivers involved in a wreck on Lap 174. The accident finished Carl Edwards’ day and put a dent in Montoya’s hopes of gaining in the Chase. He finished a spot ahead of Jimmie Johnson.