Denny Hamlin reveals new approach before Martinsville that led to win

Denny Hamlin is constantly finding ways to reinvent himself, and it’s led to a lengthy, successful career in NASCAR. That was on display once again this past weekend at Martinsville Speedway.

The 44-year-old was able to notch win No. 55, and his first since Dover last April. Additionally, it ended a 10-year drought at Martinsville, which previously served as one of Hamlin’s top tracks in the Cup Series. And he did it all in dominating fashion, as the Virginia native was clearly the far to beat throughout the final stage in his home state. 

So what led to Hamlin’s success in the Cook Our 400? He decided to rework his approach to a track that used to be one of his best. It all worked out in grand fashion, as everything came together for the No. 11 team, and Hamlin shed some light on his preparation and strategy during the race and in this new era of NASCAR as a whole via the latest episode of his Actions Detrimental podcast.

“I have to work a lot harder now to continue to be on top of my game. It’s so close. The margins are so small, especially in the Next-Gen era,” Hamlin stated. “I used to say that, you know, winning 10, 12 years ago — when I was racing Jimmie [Johnson] and Jeff [Gordon] was so much easier than what it is now. A lot of it is because we just — our technique was just better than everyone else’s. I saw it when I was driving around everyone else. We would approach the racetrack a little differently. The minute SMT [data] came out and all of our proprietary information and data started to — all the drivers got to see it. They got to see what these guys were doing. Then, we’ve just morphed our style into that, into where everyone’s driving really, really similar now, and they’re all driving really, really similar cars. The margins are small. 

“You just look at the lap times. From P1 to P25, I mean — we’re all within a tenth. It’s just not much. So, where are you gonna find the edges? I went through a transition where [Martin] Truex was consistently beating me at Martinsville about six, seven years ago. So I said, ‘All right, I’ve really got to figure out why.’ I studied and I studied and I looked and there was a moment where we had a rain delay early in the race and he had just went around me. At that time I was like, ‘Man, my car is pretty good. So, why is he better?’ I logged on SMT and I looked at it and was like, ‘Okay, when we go back green, I’m going to drive my car like that and let me just see what happens.’ We went back green, I drove it like that. Immediately I said, ‘Whoa, I’m going to need something different out of my car to do this.’ Like it’s, you know — it wasn’t faster for me. 

“I was driving the car to its max capability for what I’d — the area I had sent my team down, you know, because here’s my driving style. I’m going to drive it like this. I need the car to work a certain way to adapt to my style. Martin had a different style, so he needed something different out of his car. Shannon Spake, I just spoke with her and she actually brought this up. She’s like, ‘Isn’t it’s like going through a swing-change in golf?’ I was like, that’s actually a perfect analogy, because it just takes time. 

“What I realized in that moment is this way is faster, but not with the car that I’ve got. So, I’ve got to change what I tell the team. I need to adapt to this different style of driving. It’s a constant evolution. When they change tires and they change aero, what you want to do to make speed continues to change with it. You know, yesterday was just one of those things where it all came together and it was perfect.”

Alas, it’s easy to see why Hamlin was in such a tremendous mood following his performance at Martinsville Speedway. It seems like the No. 11 team has survived their struggles and now they’ve come out the other side smelling like roses. The Cook Out 400 was the first example of that, but there’s certainly more wins that could be coming in the next couple of weeks.

Denny Hamlin has locked himself into the playoffs, and with his new approach, the 44-year-old could be on the inside track to his first NASCAR Cup Series title. That’s what’s on his mind this season, as there are only so many bites at the apple left. We’ll see if he can get it done this season.