Denny Hamlin comes clean on his uneasy reaction to Chris Gabehart’s new role and reveals what changed after one week

After winning his first race with his new crew chief, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was featured on NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s podcast "Dale Jr. Download." During the episode, Hamlin expressed his true feelings after his team switched his crew chief during the off-season.

In November 2024, JGR announced that the #11 Toyota Camry XSE driver would have a new crew chief for the 2025 season. The team promoted Chris Gabehart to the team's competition director and replaced him with Chris Gayle. This decision caught Hamlin off guard, leaving him "shocked." However, later, he made his peace with the news.

Chris Gabehart has led Denny Hamlin's #11 Toyota since 2019. Reflecting upon the long-term relationship with Gabehart, Hamlin was asked if he was "concerned" about his team's decision made in the off-season. The oldest driver on the grid claimed he didn't want to start over his career and stated:

"There was a period there where I certainly was not happy with Joe Gibbs Racing, but, you know, I got to trust that they got the bigger picture in mind. Yeah. I mean, I was worried. I don't want to start over. I'm too late in my career to start over with someone again, and I just wasn't really excited about that." [00:08 onwards]

"And but, you know, I thought about it, I slept on it for about a week or so, and was like, you know, I'm going to make the best of it. I'm going to do the best job that I can. I'm going to be a professional here, and I'm going to make sure that I'm doing my job as a driver to give Chris Gayle a fair opportunity to prove himself in the cup series," he added.

Denny Hamlin won his first race with Chris Gayle at Martinsville Speedway on March 30, 2025. He dominated the race, leading 274 laps in the 400-lap event, and crossed the finish line 4.617 seconds ahead of his teammate, Christopher Bell.

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Denny Hamlin's team praised their drivers for their remarkable performance at Martinsville

NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin secured the first win of the 2025 season at the 0.526-mile track. Hamlin's last win at Martinsville Speedway came in 2015, and he won the 2025 event at the track after a long hiatus of ten years.

His JGR teammates all finished the race strong. Christopher Bell was approximately 5 seconds behind him and secured the runner-up position. He was followed by Martin Truex Jr.'s replacement, Chase Briscoe, in ninth place, and Ty Gibbs finished the race in 13th place.

Reflecting upon the team's solid performance at the 400-lap event on March 30, 2025, the team owner, Joe Gibbs, stated (via Dirty Mo Media):

“Denny bounced back today. I told him, ‘That’s the old Denny.’ Leading all (throughout) the race and winning the race. Christopher did a great job. Chase — really good — a top 10. Ty was just outside of it and got turned so, big day for us. Just appreciate everybody here and what this means. It means a lot. Progressive—new sponsor — huge deal for us.” [00:22 onwards]

Denny Hamlin secured his spot in the playoffs alongside his teammate Christopher Bell, Wood Brothers Racing's Josh Berry, and Hendrick Motorsports duo Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson.