KANSAS CITY, Kan: Denny Hamlin had a challenging day in Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway, but the demanding day was rewarded both as a NASCAR Cup Series driver and car owner.
Hamlin was forced to start his No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry from the rear of the field but the speed in his Joe Gibbs Racing car easily carried him to the front of the field, but a series of pit road infractions would try to hamper Hamlin’s day as a driver.
Through the penalties, however, Hamlin was able to rally back to a fourth-place finish and earn his second top-10 of the season, a much-needed boost from the driver’s perspective.
On the flip side, as a NASCAR Cup Series team owner, Hamlin displayed raw emotion as he watched driver Kurt Busch earned his first victory as the driver of the No. 45 Jordan Brand Toyota Camry.
Busch’s triumph is the second Cup win for 23XI Racing, the Cup Series team Hamlin co-owns with NBA superstar Michael Jordan since Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway last October with the team’s other driver Bubba Wallace delivered the company’s inaugural win alongside his first career Cup victory.
“It’s huge,” said Hamlin of Busch’s victory. “I’m so proud of Kurt (Busch) and Bubba (Wallace) as well. Bubba deserved to have a shot at a win today as well. It was so much better than that (10th).
“Mistakes and we are working on it, and that’s something I felt like I’ve let these guys down with is – pit road. It’s just part of it. It’s growing pains, but this is what this team is capable of. I’m happy for Kurt.”
Of course, Hamlin who by the end of the race had muscled his way back inside the top-five but was able to watch from the windshield Busch preyed down on his brother Kyle Busch and then-leader Kyle Larson to score his 34th Cup Series victory.
And while Hamlin showcased emotion in the rain-shortened race at the 2.66-mile superspeedway last fall, Sunday’s win hit the heart different emotionally – not only from Wallace’s victory but also from any of Hamlin’s 47 Cup victories, including three Daytona 500s – all with Joe Gibbs Racing.
“Emotionally for sure,” explained Hamlin when asked if Sunday’s win was the most excited he’s ever been. “I’ve obviously been excited for the Daytona 500, but I just don’t know why this one just feels bigger to me. I think a lot of it is because I watched it live.
“I think had I been on the other side of the track and just kind of looked at the pylon it would be one thing, but I had a front-row seat to it. I don’t know. I’ve kind of got a very tough RBF, yeah, and I don’t show my emotion a lot.
“But I am an emotional person. I get emotional when I get around the team guys. I got emotional when I hugged Billy (Scott, crew chief) at the pit box because I see how excited they are and it’s, like, I know how hard they work. It’s like these people are part of — this is a family. Inside that small building, we’re in right now it is a family. We are all very, very tight, so the wins just feel bigger for that reason.
Putting his driver’s cap back on, Hamlin seemed satisfied with his 200th top-five finish on Sunday afternoon.
“Listen, we had a shot,” Hamlin said. “We got to second behind the 45 (Busch) and he pulled away from us, so he just was very, very good once he got out front.
“Really when he was third there I was just thinking that, oh, man, it’s going to be very, very tough to get around. But he worked him over.
“I mean we went to the back three times. I just never could get an opportunity to get up there and show the speed, but once I was there, I just couldn’t get past the aero side of it.
“We were all a freight train at the top, and that’s all I had. Our Sport Clips Camry was fast. We had to go to the back three times and that is not ideal. We’ll talk about the stuff that we’ve got to fix tomorrow, but I just want to think about the positives today.”
We did it! @23XIRacing #TeamToyota pic.twitter.com/5W43WGtUr0
— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) May 16, 2022
Follow Chris Knight on Twitter @Knighter01.
