Denny Hamlin fights back tears, makes fan U-turn – Sports News
Denny Hamlin confirmed a totally different facet of his persona after his spectacular win at Las Vegas to cement his spot within the Championship 4.
During the South Point 400, Hamlin battled Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe for the highest spot and with 5 laps to go, the 44-year-old overtook Larson and Briscoe to guide his place in Phoenix. As the Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) star celebrated, cameras inside his No. 11 Toyota Camry confirmed an emotional Hamlin wiping his eyes of tears as he drove across the observe.
Once he regained his composure, Hamlin spoke about what it meant to win his sixtieth race. That was a objective he set for himself back in February 2025 and his feelings at Las Vegas confirmed simply how a lot reaching the milestone meant for him and his profession.
“Yeah, this one means a lot,” an tear-filled Hamlin started. “This is the point where I kind of give the fans some —- but not today. I appreciate all of you so much. Yeah, just obviously want to say hi to my dad, family back at home, all the friends that came out here from Vegas to hope we get 60.
“But I did not assume we have been. But yeah, simply put the pedal down these final 10 laps and made it occur.” He added that he felt like he had “nothing to lose” and so he went for it and within the course of, gained his sixtieth race, tying Kevin Harvick for Tenth-most all-time in NASCAR historical past.
“I imply, in the event you would ask me yesterday, I’d have mentioned no,” he continued. “But you realize, simply tremendous proud of this group for making the changes they did, the crew for doing a great job all day.
“And I don’t know, I just don’t know what to say. It was very unexpected. You know, with those last 15 laps, I didn’t think we were going to win, but I knew I was going to give it all I had.”
Hamlin spoke more on his win at Las Vegas and confirmed his humility, stating: “Hey guys, I wish I had more energy, but I just can’t believe what had happened here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, those last 10-15 laps, I can’t process it, I just don’t know what happened.
“I drove it as onerous as I might, and to get this win, my sixtieth, it is very humbling, and I simply need to say thanks to all of the followers that cheered after the race, that meant a lot to me, and I can not wait to see y’all subsequent week.”
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For the JGR star, winning his 60th race superceded his goal of winning a championship. Speaking to FOX Sports’ Chris Myers in February, Hamlin made it clear where his priorities lie as he continues to progress toward the final stages of his career.
“Day-to-day, I do not give it some thought. You know, once they discuss concerning the greats of the game, they will go down the record of race winners,” he said at the time.
“I actually need to get to 60, get myself inside the highest 10 of race winners within the Cup Series all time. That, to me, is the driving issue. If I can get to 60 and win a championship, I imply, icing on the cake.”
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