LONG POND, Pa. — Only three active drivers have scored at least 50 wins in the NASCAR Cup Series: Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, and as of July 23, Denny Hamlin.
It’s fitting Hamlin joins an illustrious trio at a three-turned speedway, hitting the half-century mark in career wins in Sunday’s HighPoint.com 400 at Pocono Raceway — becoming the track’s all-time winningest driver in the process with seven triumphs.
That Hamlin’s recent successes have featured a fade from cheers to boos — including a plethora at Pocono — further magnifies the evolution of the 42-year-old’s career.
MORE: Battle with Larson results in Hamlin win | Cup standings
Eighteen years in, Hamlin boasts quite the resume — three-time Daytona 500 champion; three-time Southern 500 winner at Darlington; 2022 Coca-Cola 600 winner at Charlotte; team co-owner of 23XI Racing with NBA legend and global superstar Michael Jordan. But his role in a handful of on-track incidents over the past decade-and-a-half consume some of the conversation surrounding Hamlin.
The list includes run-ins with Brad Keselowski and then-teammate Kyle Busch a decade ago, a fierce battle for the championship against Jimmie Johnson in 2010, and has more recently included a 2022 rivalry with Ross Chastain and collisions with the Hendrick trio of Chase Elliott, Alex Bowman, Kyle Larson — highlighted again in full force Sunday at Pocono.
Through the noise, the winning hasn’t stopped for the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
A conversation with former teammate and NASCAR Hall of Famer Matt Kenseth this week helped Hamlin contextualize the ebbs and flows of a successful stint through the 38-week grind NASCAR’s Cup Series entails.
“I was like, you know, that’s one thing that we’re always guilty of is not appreciating it (success) in the moment,” Hamlin said. “Like it’s always when you’re retired, and you’ve got a bunch of time, and you’re sitting there on your rocker on your back porch when you’re thinking about, well, what have I accomplished in the sport? These things take a long time to set in. They really do. We’re in the heat of the moment now. I mean, I’m answering questions about if what I did was fair or not. I mean, give me a break.
“It takes time. And I just never thought I’d get an opportunity in the Cup Series. But luckily, JD Gibbs and Joe Gibbs took a chance on me nearly 20 years ago. And to get my 50th when it comes down to the track that I got my first, it certainly is special.”
Indeed, the first two victories at Hamlin’s Cup career came at the 2.5-mile “Tricky Triangle” in 2006, sweeping the track’s two races in his rookie year. Jeff Gordon previously held the track’s winning record with six checkered flags — and Hamlin seemingly broke the record a year ago, crossing the start/finish line first but failing post-race inspection and receiving a disqualification for a technical infraction instead.
His Pocono record aside, few drivers have found long-term homes the way Hamlin has at JGR. Since the autumn of 2005, Hamlin has been the driver of the team’s No. 11 car and largely with FedEx emblazoned as a primary sponsor.
“I’m just really happy to win it for the team — the whole team: (Crew chief) Chris (Gabehart) and his team on the pit box, guys in the war room, the guys in the fab shop,” Hamlin said. “Like, I’ve been really lucky to be part of an organization that carried me for many years to many, many victories — like a lot. Not everyone gets the opportunity to go from racing late models to racing for Joe Gibbs Racing in 18 months in the Cup Series. It’s hard to do. It really is. But luckily, they believed in me, they gave me time to get going, and the rest is history.”
MORE: Playoff Watch | Race Rewind: Pocono’s full highlights
The appreciation is mutual, as team owner Joe Gibbs explained Sunday.
“I think Denny is really patient. I see him, and he’s a vet,” Gibbs said. “He understands it. I think he understands how to win. He’s certainly been a great representative for us.
“The other thing I’ve always admired about Denny, he has been so loyal to us, our family. We had a picture there taken in the winner’s circle where JD used to come up behind Denny and squeeze him. Denny had me come up there and do that. I just appreciate Denny in every way.”
Hamlin’s legacy has grown to include team ownership with his 23XI Racing team firmly aligned with Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing, a partnership that has seen all of its full-time drivers visit Victory Lane in Bubba Wallace, Kurt Busch and Tyler Reddick. In fact, Pocono’s performance was an ideal Toyota day: Hamlin was celebrating the win while his driver Reddick was second, JGR’s Martin Truex Jr. was third, and Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs’ grandson and a Cup Series rookie, scored his first top-five result in fifth.
And Hamlin’s resume isn’t exactly complete. A NASCAR Cup Series championship remains the most significant unchecked box. But with two wins this season and 22 playoff points, Hamlin seems likely to have another opportunity at Phoenix Raceway this November.