Denny Hamlin was making the headlines after clinching the fuel mileage race on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. This win brought him closer to Kevin Harvick, who is placed 10th on the all-time wins list. Hamlin needs three more wins to draw level, and at this pace, he is likely to overtake the former SHR driver. Although this was a big win for the Toyota camp, adding to last year’s win by Tyler Reddick, there was someone who made big gains.

Roush Fenway Racing, with 13 Cup wins, has been the most dominant at MIC. It is essentially a home race for Jack Roush and RFK Racing. While Hamlin’s Toyota was in the victory lane, the RFK Racing Fords had a huge day with all three of their race cars finishing inside the top 10 spots. Had it been a few extra laps, Chris Buescher, who finished runner-up, could’ve charged down at the #11 car and possibly snag the win. In the end, the driver of the #17 car was disappointed with himself for fumbling at the crucial moment in the race.

“No I got by the #38 and I just had a big big old run on the bottom, and that’s what let the #11, #54 and the #38 back by. That moment was my error, and it really cost us the win today because we were better than the #11 car. Proud of the team for giving me that car and that opportunity. I’d love to have it back, but that’s not the option. Lot of speed, fantastic race for us, big solid day, but just feels like a missed opportunity,” Chris Buescher said after the race.

The 2025 season has been an up-and-down one for the RFK Racing driver. He does have five top 10s and two top 5s after last Sunday, but he is lacking that race-winning speed on his #17 Ford Mustang. Michigan presented him with that opportunity, but strategy and fuel mileage racing didn’t work out in his favor. On the flip side, Buescher now finds himself 12th in the points standings heading into the road course patch of the regular season.

His teammate, Ryan Preece, bagged another top 10 finish, and he is feeling confident in his team’s approach to be able to consistently score points on weekends. “Our Castrol Ford Mustang was solid, and I easily felt I could have got 2 or 3 more spots if I felt more confident in where we were on fuel. A Top 10 was better than a 28th, so with all that, if we can keep being consistent and putting ourselves in position to be there, we’ll have our shot at a win. This one, we were really good when it mattered, and we’ll go get them in Mexico.”

Well, that P2 finish at Talladega, which got chalked out after post-race inspection, has to sting the #60 team. But despite that setback, Preece finds himself 14th in the playoff standings and could be banking on another super speedway race to lock himself in the playoffs. RFK Racing has found the momentum at just the right time, and team co-owner Brad Keselowski needs more races like this to keep his playoff hopes alive. The Michigan race produced a lot of comebacks, apart from just RFK Racing, even struggling Toyota drivers managed to turn a corner for good after last Sunday’s fuel mileage racing.

Bubba Wallace can breathe a sigh of relief, Ty Gibbs almost had his shot to win

When Denny Hamlin and William Byron were battling for the lead on the final few laps, the #54 Toyota was lurking just behind them, waiting to pounce on the opportunity. But Hamlin was smart in his approach and kept Ty Gibbs at bay while he made that race-winning pass. Given how tough the 2025 outing has been for the young driver, a win could’ve overturned all his misfortunes, but he had to settle for a 3rd place finish.

“I think a win is more important than third. It’s good to have a good finish, for sure. Good to have a good day, a good comeback. We started off just very horrible. Glad we could come back and got better. Thanks for my team for sticking behind me,” Ty Gibbs said after the race. But he still has a mountain to climb when it comes to making the playoffs. Meanwhile, Bubba Wallace will be glad that a couple of wins have put him right back in contention to make it to the top 16.

“I was doing a little bit of technique stuff on that run to pick up some fuel. When it was time to go, it was time to go. When you weren’t really gaining anything, you have to be smart about what the situation is, and I feel like we’re getting there. All-in-all, a good day,” Wallace added. After dodging the question about his future at 23XI Racing due to the injunction ruling, he did his job well on the racetrack. After a sixth-place finish in Nashville, a top 5 last Sunday saw him create a huge points buffer between him and the cutline. He is +61 points from the driver placed 16th.

Now all it takes is a new winner to offset these standings, and both Wallace and Gibbs will look to compete for a win to ensure their entry in the playoffs.