Denny Hamlin has earned his place as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers, carrying 48 career Cup Series wins, including three iconic Harley J. Earl trophies from winning the Daytona 500.
Hamlin’s routine success on the sport’s biggest stage puts him in rarefied air as one of only six drivers in history with three or more wins in the “Great American Race.”
DAYTONA 500: List of drivers with multiple wins
Bolstering his incredible career accomplishments, he is also a three-time Southern 500 winner, an All-Star Race winner and conquered the Coca-Cola 600 in 2022 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Beginning his full-time Cup Series tenure in 2006, Hamlin has won one or more races in 16 of 18 seasons and finished top five in the points standings eight times. His premier series win total is tied for 16th all-time (Herb Thomas) and third among full-time active drivers, only trailing Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick.
Driving the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Hamlin is the second active driver named to the Greatest 75 list, following Kyle Larson’s announcement on April 13.
NASCAR 75: Updated list of Greatest Drivers | Hamlin through the years
Perhaps one of his biggest feats is joining the ranks of the few who have simultaneously been successful driver-owners in the sport. Hamlin and NBA legend Michael Jordan partnered to launch 23XI Racing for the 2020 Cup Series season and have placed every full-time driver for the organization in Victory Lane — Bubba Wallace, Kurt Busch and Tyler Reddick.
While there are certainly many chapters to his storied career, Hamlin’s story is still being written in pursuit of his first Cup Series championship. He has moved on to the Championship 4 in three of the last five years and finished runner-up in the final 2010 standings.
The 42-year-old has succeeded at all three of NASCAR’s national levels with 17 Xfinity Series victories, 64 top-five finishes and 100 top 10s, and two wins in the Craftsman Truck Series.