Tony DiBenedetto tried to console his son with a hug. “The pain was like being stabbed a hundred times in the chest,” DiBenedetto said. Passion, persistence and even the hopes of many fans at Bristol were not enough to keep Hamlin from winning his fourth race of the season.ĭiBenedetto suffered in silence as Hamlin celebrated. Hamlin passed DiBenedetto with 12 laps to go.ĭiBenedetto was close enough to Hamlin that he could see the leader in the final laps - “I was screaming in the car,” DiBenedetto said - but far enough away that he could not get to Hamlin’s rear bumper even as his spotter repeatedly said on the radio “whatever it takes.” I was just thinking, there’s a lot of people at home and a lot of people in the stands that probably don’t want to see this happen but it’s going to happen.” “When I was marching through the field, I was hoping that somebody would pass him so that I didn’t take the win away,” Denny Hamlin said. He led 93 consecutive laps in the final stage, but contact with Ryan Newman’s car with about 40 laps to go as Newman sought to stay on the lead lap damaged the left front of DiBenedetto’s car. While this was the 28-year-old’s career-best result, DiBenedetto only felt pain immediately after the race. After climbing from his car, Matt DiBenedetto celebrated his runner-up finish at Bristol Motor Speedway by unzipping the top of his uniform to remove a bag of ice on this hot, sticky night and toss it to the ground.ĭiBenedetto’s slumped shoulders, pursed lips and faraway glaze displayed the angst, frustration and disappointment that have been constant companions since he was told Tuesday that he would not return to Leavine Family Racing after this season, leaving him without a ride for 2020.

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