Denny Hamlin showed his class despite suffering a second consecutive defeat to Kyle Larson in the race for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, telling the No. 5 driver and his team that they "deserve everything".

Larson, 34, retained his NASCAR Cup Series championship as a result of a magnificent postseason that saw him open up a 67-point lead ahead of the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday, leaving him needing just nine points to officially lock up the title.

The Hendrick Motorsports star did just that before the race had even reached its halfway point, mathematically eliminating his remaining challengers by finishing fourth in Stage 1 - earning seven stage points plus one point for starting.

It meant Larson completed the remainder of the race, eventually finishing 12th, knowing he was already the champion, with the achievement marking his second consecutive championship and his third overall Cup Series title, making him the first back-to-back champion since Jimmie Johnson (2006-2010).

What his latest success also meant was that Hamlin's wait for a first-ever NASCAR Cup Series championship goes on, after the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran, who ended up in sixth position on Sunday, finished runner-up to Larson for the second year running.

However, Hamlin's latest disappointment hasn't stopped him from showing his class and offering his genuine congratulations to Larson and his team, acknowledging that, despite putting together a strong season, the No. 5 outfit was just too good to beat.

"We had a great year with every way you can measure; it's been really, really good," Hamlin began to USA Sports. "Congrats to the 5 team; they deserve everything, the spoils of victory. They've performed absolutely incredible during these last 10 races.

"But we are extremely happy with the 36 races that we've put together, and it's really tough to do in this sport."

By the time The Chase got underway, nobody could have envisaged Larson finishing as winner, after he failed to record a single victory during the regular season, but the Hendrick Motorsports star just clicked into gear when it mattered most, completely dominating the stage.

Larson's third championship was effectively wrapped up with two races to spare once he claimed victory at Talladega on October 25, and despite playing a chasing game ever since, Hamlin was proud of his team's effort this season, especially heading into the final race.

"It was really good. I'm really proud of the whole Progressive Toyota team. We made lots of gains from Friday to the race tonight. Really happy with the effort we put forth there on the race track today," Hamlin said.

"Just going for it there at the end and cost us some spots getting into the wall. Definitely wanted to try to win. It was a fun race. Certainly, we picked up a little steam from where we were on the other mile and a half last time."

Hamlin will now attempt to go again next year as he chases down that elusive first championship, though with Larson lurking around, nothing will be easy.