"We can win anywhere we go to" - Denny Hamlin hoping for consistency after P9 finish at NASCAR Bristol race

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin drove his #11 FedEx Freight Toyota Camry along the concrete surface for the NASCAR Cup Series' first-round cut-off race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Hamlin managed to secure a top 10 finish after starting in fourth place, which was the highest in qualifying for the Toyota driver.

Denny Hamlin has a history of short track performances, with six top-two finishes at the 0.533-mile track. Returning to Bristol Motor Speedway, he had hopes of taking victory, but things went wrong after he got a tire blow that dragged him behind.

Speaking to the media during the post-race interview, Hamlin mentioned that they had issues with the Toyotas, which resulted in them battling for the ninth position. Despite not taking the victory, he knows they can win anywhere.

In his statement, he said:

“We had some steering issues, and it looks like our Toyota teammates also had steering issues. We just battled through it and held on to ninth place today. … We can win anywhere we go to. We’ll go to Texas and try to win like we always do. Just need to get a good, solid round going. Just seems like mechanical stuff with this Next Gen and wrecks are the X-factor in moving on so you just have to be really consistent and with five races to go, that’s when you have to start winning.”

Denny Hamlin explained that the mechanical issues with the Next Gen cars are the ones that are limiting them from not taking the victory. Recently, Hamlin has been caught up in wrecking issues, especially the Daytona International Speedway wreck on August 28.

Looking at the track record in the last four Bristol races, Hamlin has led 276 laps and won one race with a stage victory this fall. He also has two consecutive runner-up finishes. This means that by going to Texas Motor Speedway next weekend, Hamlin might win the race.

---

Denny Hamlin’s performance since the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs began

Since the start of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver has had a good start and incredible performance. At Darlington Speedway, he started in 11th place, where he managed to secure the runner-up position after Erik Jones edged him to take the victory.

In Kansas, Denny Hamlin started in 25th place, where he battled back to finish in 2nd place after battling with Bubba Wallace Jr. for the lead position. After incredible results, Hamlin advanced to the next stage of the playoff elimination at Bristol Motor Speedway.

In the race at Kansas, Hamlin was above the cutline with 2057 points. After the race at Bristol, he sits in sixth place in the Cup Series playoffs with 3013 points behind William Byron. Heading to Texas Motor Speedway, Hamlin hopes he will secure a victory.