Denny Hamlin reveals mindset in closing laps at Las Vegas, emotions of 60th Cup win
Denny Hamlin has spent a lot of time thinking inside his race car over the duration of his NASCAR career. In Sunday’s Round of 8 playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Hamlin didn’t think — he did.
Hamlin didn’t need to win Sunday’s race to advance to the Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway. But at some point, in those final 10 laps, he decided to go for it. It paid off, as he passed Kyle Larson and then Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe to take the checkered flag, Cup Series win No. 60 for him.
“I can’t believe, I can’t process, I don’t know what happened. It’s all a blur. That was one of the very few moments in which I did not think. That entire last 10 laps, I did not think whatsoever, I just did,” Hamlin said after the race, via SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “I said, ‘Alright, this is what I need to do to win this race. I’m gonna run this line, I’m gonna approach it differently, I’m gonna hold the cast down.’ My car was just phenomenal. I just couldn’t believe that we were able to make the moves that we were to win that race.”
Denny Hamlin clinches spot in Championship Race
From Hamlin’s point of view, it all happened so fast. His team made a mistake on the last pit stop which was meant to knock him out of contention. But it was on that pit stop where crew chief Chris Gayle got his car just right.
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“I can’t wait to watch it back. I can’t process everything that happened, I need to see it again because when you’re on the field, it happens so quickly,” Hamlin said. “What a way to win 60. That was crazy. If I won it at like a Talladega, that’s one thing. To come back from 10th with 20 to go, I can’t believe it, and I can’t put it into words how much it means to me.”
At 44, Hamlin is still chasing that first championship. He knows he doesn’t have many chances remaining, and he looks as determined as ever to get it done this season. Hamlin will be there at Phoenix, racing for a championship alongside three other drivers.