Denny Hamlin reveals when the feeling of being a NASCAR Cup driver sank in

NASCAR drivers Denny Hamlin and Corey Heim were recently seen together in an official 23XI Racing video on X (formerly Twitter), answering questions while taking turns on a snooker table. Corey Heim is expected to pilot the number 50 23XI Racing Toyota in the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway on June 30.

Amid questions like "What do you hope to accomplish by the time you're 50?" and "What is your biggest driving pet peeve on the track?", Denny Hamlin was asked when he truly felt like a full-fledged NASCAR Cup Series driver. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver took a trip down memory lane back to 2006, his rookie year in the Nextel Cup Series.

Recalling his win in the Budweiser shootout, the 23XI Racing co-owner said,

"When I won the shoot-out at Daytona in my rookie season, that was when I truly felt welcome to the Cup Series."

A 25-year-old Denny Hamlin beat veteran drivers like Tony Stewart and Dale Earnhardt Jr. en route to his first victory in the NASCAR Cup Series. As reported by motorsport.com in 2006, Hamlin was not expecting to win, as he knew he would not get any help from his fellow drivers. However, all he wanted was to earn respect moving ahead in his career.

"I can't believe it," said Hamlin. "I wasn't the most optimistic person before the race started. I didn't think I was going to have any help...I just wanted to earn respect for next Sunday."

Today, Denny Hamlin has 54 wins in the NASCAR Cup Series including several triumphs in prestigious races like the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, and the Coca-Cola 600. The Chesterfield native has won seven times at Pocono Raceway, one of the trickiest racetracks in NASCAR's schedule. He also has 18 victories in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and two victories in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

Denny Hamlin on mentoring Corey Heim

Corey Heim made his Cup Series debut this year, substituting for Erik Jones behind the wheel of the number 43 car as the latter stayed sidelined from the Würth 400 at Dover Motor Speedway due to a fractured vertebra. Although the 21-year-old Truck Series racer finished 25th in the race, he showed incredible promise all day.

Reflecting on the same, Denny Hamlin said in an older interview that he had done everything to help Heim get a hang of the NextGen machine. Considering Heim's performance during the practice sessions the day before, Hamlin said (2:26),

"I thought he did a really good job that first round of practice; he was obviously very concerned never being in a NextGen car before in real life."

"I've been trying to help Corey as much as I can over the last week, obviously had some interactions with him throughout the year so...just tried to give him some insight on what he should look for with his car," he added.

Capitalizing on those insights, Heim has earned a ride in the #50 car commemorating Mobil 1's 50th anniversary. Needless to say, he was elated at the opportunity.

"I’m very thankful for this opportunity I’ve been given by Mobil 1 to compete with 23XI in Nashville,” Heim told NASCAR. "We have seen this season how strong 23XI’s Camrys have been, which makes me even more excited to get behind the wheel in Nashville. I’m putting in the effort to be prepared for this opportunity and cannot wait to get on track with the No. 50 Mobil 1 Toyota team..."

The action resumes at Nashville Superspeedway on June 30 at 3:30 p.m. ET. The 300-lap race can be watched live on NBC Sports and Peacock and heard on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR radio. While Corey Heim will make his first start with 23XI Racing, Denny Hamlin will run his 19th race of the year, in which he will enter third on points.