Denny Hamlin to Kyle Busch: Way to 'pound 'em in the ground'

When the 2015 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup kicked off with a media event in downtown Chicago, defending champion Kevin Harvick indicated he had a simple plan for the red-hot Joe Gibbs Racing team.

"I think we're going to pound them into the ground," Harvick said of the JGR teams during the Chase-opening media event in Chicago. "That's what I think. Hopefully, they can beat themselves."

Well, some of the JGR teams did just that. Matt Kenseth was caught up in a feud with Team Penske's Joey Logano, one that cost them both a shot at the title. Denny Hamlin's team had an issue with the roof hatch at Talladega Superspeedway and was eliminated from the Chase as a result. Carl Edwards had a quiet Chase, and never got a shot to race his way into the Championship 4 after rains hit Phoenix International Raceway two weeks ago.

That left Kyle Busch as the lone bullet for JGR. The driver that missed the first 11 races of the year would face Harvick, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr. for the 2015 title at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

While the four title contenders kept everything cordial throughout the championship weekend at Homestead, after Busch beat Harvick for the win and the title Sunday night, Hamlin took a page out of Harvick's book while congratulating his teammate's accomplishment.