Hamlin the same at PIR and in COT: on the cusp

Denny Hamlin seems to have this Car of Tomorrow thing figured out. Almost.

He led 177 laps in the COT's debut at Bristol, second only to teammate Tony Stewart. But a fuel-pump issue slowed his effort and resulted in a 14th-place finish.

Hamlin honors Tech

In addition to the Virginia Tech decal on his car -- all three series will honor the school through Richmond -- Virginia native Denny Hamlin will wear a VT logo on his helmet.

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He led 125 laps at Martinsville, second only to Dale Earnhardt Jr. He finished third, after starting from the pole.

On Thursday night at Phoenix International Raceway, Hamlin qualified third for the Subway Fresh Fit 500 (8 p.m. ET Saturday, FOX), his third top-10 start in as many COT races.

"The guys in the JGR [Joe Gibbs Racing] shop spent a ton of time and effort in preparing these cars and it is pretty clear they hit on something because we have been really strong," Hamlin said. "Really, only some random problems kept us or the 20 [Stewart] from winning at Bristol.

"Then we were both good at Martinsville the next weekend so I do feel like we are ahead of the curve at the moment but this sport can change in a hurry. We know we need to keep working hard on these cars, and hopefully win one here."

Hamlin will start in a favorable position for victory at Phoenix. Three races from PIR have been won from the third starting spot, tied with second for most at the track.

Hamlin earned his first career pole at Phoenix, in just his sixth Nextel Cup start, when he took the controls of the No. 11 Chevrolet for the final seven races in 2005. He finished 13th in that race -- a missed lug nut ruined a possible top-five finish -- but was third in his most recent attempt there this past fall.

"Really, no track that we visit reminds me more of racing when I was younger than PIR. I spent my early career running flat tracks in Late Models and this track feels like that to me," Hamlin said. "Put us out there under the lights and you can't get any closer to the Late Models days than here at Phoenix and that is one of the reasons it's my favorite place to race."

Hamlin finished 34th in his only other spring appearance at Phoenix after he lost a cylinder on the first lap and struggled with power. (Continued)