Denny Hamlin’s #11 team successfully defended its title in NASCAR’s Pit Crew Challenge on Thursday night, edging Jimmie Johnson’s #48 team in the final round. Hamlin’s seven-member team changed four tires, put in gas and pushed the car 40 yards in 22.298 seconds without collecting a penalty to earn $70,675. The crew now gets to select its pit stall Saturday for the All-Star race. Hamlin’s team, which became the first repeat champion in the competition’s seven seasons, included gas man Scott Wood; catch-can man Justin White; front tire changer Nick Krizmanich and carrier Brandon Pegram; rear tire changer Mike Hicks and carrier Heath Cherry; and jack man Nate Bolling. Clint Bowyer’s #33 team and Tony Stewart’s #14 crew combined to split all the individual awards – and rewrite the record book. They set event records based on their times in the seeding and opening rounds to collect $10,000 each. See much more on my Pit Crew News / Awards page.(Associated Press)(5-19-2011)
