Roush Fenway Racing had its best day thus far in the Sprint Cup Finals on Sunday, as Carl Edwards snapped his prolonged losing streak by winning the Kobalt Tools 500.
Edwards had not won in 70 races before leading 93 laps en route to his victory at Phoenix International Raceway. He earned 190 points on the day, and moved into fourth place in the Sprint Cup standings.
Roush Fenway drivers Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth had excellent races as well, finishing fourth and seventh, respectively. Biffle notched 160 points and now holds the eighth spot in the standings, while Kenseth earned 151 points and sits right behind Edwards at fifth.
Ryan Newman finished second and Joey Logano third, but neither qualified for the Sprint Cup postseason.
Standings leader Denny Hamlin ran a very strong race, leading a race-high 190 laps, but was undone by poor fuel management and ultimately finished 12th.
Thanks to a fifth-place finish by Jimmie Johnson, who entered the race in second place in the standings, Hamlin now leads by just 15 points headed into the final race next weekend.
Third-place driver Kevin Harvick finished sixth, narrowing his deficit to 46 points.
The Sprint Cup Series’ final race – the Ford 400 — will take place next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Despite Sunday’s strong showing by Roush Fenway drivers, Hamlin, Johnson, and Harvick are the only drivers with a realistic chance at earning the title.
