Denny Hamlin says there weren't many surprise eliminations in NASCAR Playoffs Round of 12

Denny Hamlin is on to the Round of 8 in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, but he took some time to look back at the previous three races before turning the page.

While it was a while ride at Texas, Talladega and the Charlotte Roval, Hamlin can’t say he was surprised by who eventually bit the dust, as Kyle Busch, Ross Chastain, Bubba Wallace and Brad Keselowski were eliminated.

“I was telling the people on the bus and I was like, ‘Man, if Kyle [Busch] wins,’ and I was looking and there was like, two or three people within two or three points, like who would get knocked out, we could have a major favorite be knocked out. It could be [Kyle] Larson. It could be [Martin] Truex. It would’ve put this whole thing upside-down. But it didn’t,” stated Hamlin, via his latest Actions Detrimental podcast. “I think Kyle [Busch] gave it really everything he had. They’ve been top five material, most all the road courses this year, but you heard in his interview, he said, this is about what we had. I agree with that. I think he drove it to the absolute limit of what it was capable of. He had nothing else left in the tank. So his Playoffs end. He even mentioned that Talladega and Texas are the ones that really caused this to happen. Not this one weekend. I agree with that.

“[Ross] Chastain. He gets knocked out. It was interesting. I was watching him at the end of the race, because he was making tons of moves towards the front. He pitted, like Bubba [Wallace] did, hoping for a caution. Got it. Then he drove through the field really, really well. Again, he had a 20-some lap advantage on tires, but he was making it interesting. I kept watching the bubble like, well he’s minus-27. Next thing you know, he’s like minus-13, 14. I’m like, ‘Man.’ Truex at that time, he’s just struggling. He’s just trying to keep it on the race track. I’m like, ‘Man.’ Then you’ve got Busch battling for the lead. Certainly a lot to look at there. But there were no real surprises I guess, from my standpoint, out of this round.”

As the Round of 8 begins, Hamlin will certainly be favored to make it to the Championship 4 once again. Now, the question becomes whether or not he can capture his first NASCAR title or not in 2023.

Time will tell, but the Round of 8 is the final stop before we crown a champion in NASCAR. It all begins this weekend for Denny Hamlin and company at Las Vegas.