Irwin Tools Night Race 2012 Results: Reaction, Leaders and Post Race Analysis
Denny Hamlin won his third race of the year at Bristol in the Irwin Tools Night Race. He led for 70 laps after starting in the eighth position for the race. It was Hamlin's first win in Bristol as a Sprint Cup driver.
The No. 34 car driven by David Ragan caught fire and caused a caution on the 148th lap of the race. In the first 271 laps, there were seven caution flags; there were also multiple lead changes.
There were 27 lead changes throughout the race, 14 different leaders and 13 different caution flags in total. It was extremely competitive throughout and it definitely didn't disappoint on excitement.
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After Hamlin won the race, Jimmie Johnson took second place after finishing 27th in the Pure Michigan 400. Jeff Gordon took the third-place finish despite never leading the race at any point.
Sprint Cup points leader Greg Biffle finished 19th after he led for 41 laps and maintained his standing as overall points leader.
Irwin Tools Night Race Leaderboard
For a complete look at the full leaderboard, check out NASCAR.com.
| Position | Car | Driver |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin |
| 2 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson |
| 3 | 24 | Jeff Gordon |
| 4 | 55 | Brian Vickers |
| 5 | 9 | Marcos Ambrose |
| 6 | 18 | Kyle Busch |
| 7 | 15 | Clint Bowyer |
| 8 | 20 | Joey Logano |
| 9 | 5 | Kasey Kahne |
| 10 | 27 | Paul Menard |
Updated Sprint Cup Standings
Jimmie Johnson rose two spots in the standings, giving him a better chance at the Sprint Cup heading into the chase. Denny Hamlin also rose two spots after winning the race to all but secure a spot in the top 10.
Other notable movers: Matt Kenseth fell from second to fourth in the standings. Kyle Busch moved up one spot and is now the leader for the second wild card heading into the chase.
For a complete look at the standings, check out NASCAR.com.
| Rank | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Greg Biffle | 849 |
| 2 | Jimmie Johnson | 838 |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 834 |
| 4 | Matt Kenseth | 823 |
| 5 | Martin Truex Jr. | 797 |
| 6 | Clint Bowyer | 794 |
| 7 | Brad Keselowski | 790 |
| 8 | Denny Hamlin | 774 |
| 9 | Kevin Harvick | 767 |
| 10 | Tony Stewart | 746 |
What's Next?
NASCAR is next in Atlanta for the Advocare 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race is scheduled for Sunday, September 2, 2012 at 6:30 PM ET with coverage by ESPN.
Scott Carasik is a Featured Columnist and Trends and Traffic Writer for Bleacher Report. As a Featured Columnist, he covers the Atlanta Falcons, NFL and NFL Draft. He is also the Falcons analyst at Drafttek, runs the NFL Draft Website ScarDraft.com and hosts Kvetching Draftniks Radio.
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