Hamlin hops atop final Atlanta practice – Nascar

RELATED: Practice 2 results | Full lineup

Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin launched to the top of the leaderboard Saturday in final NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Hamlin pushed the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota to a fast lap of 188.450 mph on the 1.54-mile track in final preparation for Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 (1 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM). Hamlin holds the 12th starting spot for the 500-miler, the series’ second race of the season.

Martin Truex Jr., runner-up to Hamlin in last weekend’s Great American Race, was second-fastest on the leaderboard again. The driver of the Furniture Row Racing No. 78 Toyota, an affiliate team to the Gibbs operation, registered a lap of 188.226 mph.

Defending race winner Jimmie Johnson piloted the Hendrick Motorsports No. 48 Chevrolet to the third-fastest speed (187.297 mph) in the 80-minute session. The remainder of the top five was filled with his Hendrick teammates — Dale Earnhardt Jr. (187.095) and rookie Chase Elliott (186.963), the Daytona 500 pole winner.

Defending Sprint Cup champion Kyle Busch, whose fast time in Friday’s qualifying was disallowed because of a technical violation, clocked the sixth-fastest lap in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota. Kurt Busch, who inherited the first starting position in Friday’s Coors Light Pole Qualifying after his brother’s time was disallowed, was ninth-fastest in final practice.

Jamie McMurray, who will start second Sunday, brushed the frontstretch wall near the 15-minute mark of final practice, scraping the right-rear fender of his Chip Ganassi Racing No. 1 Chevrolet.

McMurray took blame for the accident, saying he had looked down to check lap times on his digital dashboard and lost track of the racing line. McMurray indicated in TV interviews that the team did not plan to deploy a reserve car.

McMurray was fastest in the category of best consecutive 10-lap average, running his first 10 laps at 181.480 mph. Ryan Newman, Johnson, Kurt Busch and Austin Dillon completed the top five.