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Denny Hamlin congratulates Bubba Wallace on 'deserved' Brickyard 400 win

JHby: Jonathan Howard07/28/25Jondean25
Bubba Wallace Denny Hamlin bittersweet Brickyard 400
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Brickyard 400 was a strange mix of feelings for Denny Hamlin as his driver, Bubba Wallace, went on to win the race. It is the final Crown Jewel that Hamlin has yet to conquer, but he did get the win as a NASCAR team owner.

Perhaps one of the more challenging aspects of Denny Hamlin’s situation is that he is racing against his own drivers. Their success can at times come at the expense of his own success, and vice versa.

On Sunday, Hamlin fought from dead last in a backup car to finish P3. He trailed only Wallace and Kyle Larson. Today, Hamlin is still celebrating for his driver, who he says is more than deserving of he Brickyard 400 win.

“Kissing the bricks as an owner is bittersweet,” Hamlin wrote on Twitter/X. “Wish I was doing it with my 11 team. They gave me everything I needed this weekend. But I’m happy for [Bubba Wallace] and [23XI Racing] they deserved it.”

Say what you will, you have to at least respect Denny Hamlin’s honesty. He could try and play it off like it is no big deal and everything is fine. But Hamlin is a competitor. He has only two years or so left in his NASCAR career, according to his latest extension, at least.

Bubba Wallace is having his day in the spotlight. Then, it’s back to business. 23XI Racing now has a car confirmed for the playoffs. Will we see them make a deep run with the 23 team?

Denny Hamlin admits to ‘bittersweet’ feeling

As he said in his social media post, Denny Hamlin felt bittersweet on Sunday. That’s the reality that he lives in as a driver-owner right now. Good or bad, this is what he signed up for and it seems that he is more than comfortable with that.

After the race, as Hamlin spoke in the media center, he touched on his mixed emotions. It is a lot to take in.

“Yeah, I mean, because I had a role in it. I helped mentor these guys, and you know, they’re in my brain every single Monday and Tuesday,” Denny Hamlin said after the race. “I’m trying to do all I can to teach them all the tricks in the book that I have. So, I know that there’s a part of me out there. You know, it’s not my car number, and it sucks it’s not my team, team 11 out there doing it. But I’m still very gratified because truthfully, I took our chances of winning out yesterday. I knew the possibility of winning from the back here was so small. And not only that, I knew the car that we had was not going to be nearly as fast as what we had yesterday.

“So, you know, I was just content with getting a good finish. Then I hoped that one of the 23XI cars that qualified up front could execute a good day. And it looked like the 23 and 45 executed a good day. 35 looked like he had speed, just couldn’t get over the hump. So, I’m still very gratified. Just because of the weekend, and I knew, I mean, I’m sitting back there after qualifying in the car thinking, well, I’ve only got two more chances. Like, I knew I had blown this chance for this weekend because of all the obstacles to try to win from the back. You know, without luck, it’s nearly impossible. So, you know, this was the next best result.”