Denny Hamlin reports concerning issue after Stage 1 of NASCAR Championship Race

Denny Hamlin has been concerned about the possibility of a mechanical issue knocking him out of contention for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series championship. Well, it’s Sunday at Phoenix Raceway and something familiar has popped up for Hamlin and the No. 11 team.

After Stage 1 of the championship race, Hamlin reported an issue with the clutch: “Clutch pedal is long.”

That prompted this response from crew chief Chris Gayle: “Copy. … Best I can tell you is keep pumping it up for stroke if it stays long.”

Hamlin, who started on the pole, led the first 53 laps of the race before fellow Championship 4 driver William Byron passed him for the lead and took the Stage 1 win. Hamlin passed Byron for second off the Stage 2 restart, and he is now pulling away from the field after regaining the lead from Ryan Blaney.

After an early Stage 2 caution, Gayle asked Hamlin for an update on the clutch. The issue has not gone away.

“It’s long. I pump it up, I do get a little pedal back,” Hamlin said. “It’s nothing like stock, but I do have enough to get the gauge right now.”

Denny Hamlin dealing with another mechanical issue

It looks like something Hamlin will have to deal with all day. Despite the clutch issue, Hamlin has a rocket and has shown he has the top speed on the short run. Hamlin should be there at the end with a chance to win his first championship as long as no more mechanical issues pop up as they have in recent weeks.

Last Sunday at Martinsville Speedway, it was a blown engine that ended his day. The prior week at Talladega Superspeedway, Hamlin had a throttle problem. In September at Kansas Speedway, it was a power steering issue.

“Nothing would absolutely suck worse than to go to Phoenix and have a mechanical or something happen that took your opportunity to achieve your dream out,” Hamlin said after Talladega. “And so, we’ve had some issues with batteries and starters and clutches and just lots this year. I had all three.”