Joe Gibbs in awe of Denny Hamlin’s Martinsville win as JGR locks in two playoff spots

Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) has had a good start to the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season with four wins in seven races so far. After the Martinsville race, JGR owner Joe Gibbs was amazed with Denny Hamlin’s comprehensive win and how the team has performed this season, as two of its four drivers have already punched their playoff tickets.

First, Christopher Bell secured three consecutive wins earlier this season, and now, Hamlin has clinched a dominant victory in Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway. Bell and Hamlin have locked in their playoff spots. The #20 driver and #11 driver are currently fourth and sixth in the Cup Series points table.

In a post-race interview with SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, Joe Gibbs talked about Hamlin’s Martinsville win and was happy to have two of his drivers have made it into the playoffs. Here’s what Gibbs said:

“Yeah, it's awesome. Two of our cars in the playoffs, that's great. So off to a good start, see if we can keep going.”

Denny Hamlin’s victory at Martinsville marked his sixth of his career at the track and ended a decade-long drought there, with his last triumph at the 0.526-mile track coming in 2015.

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Joe Gibbs praised all his drivers for strong performance at Martinsville

It was a strong day for all four JGR drivers. Driving the #11 Toyota Camry for JGR, the 44-year-old led the race-high 274 laps, showcasing a dominant performance. His teammate, Bell, secured a runner-up finish, resulting in a 1-2 for Joe Gibbs. Meanwhile, the other two JGR drivers —Chase Briscoe and Ty Gibbs—finished ninth and 13th.

While speaking with Dirty Mo Media after the race, Gibbs expressed his pride after Hamlin’s dominant Martinsville win, calling it a return to the #11’s classic form. He also appreciated the effort of his other three drivers, praising Bell’s P2 finish, Briscoe’s solid top-10 result, and his grandson Ty Gibbs’ unfortunate incident that kept him just outside the top 10.

After a productive day for JGR as a whole at Martinsville, here's what Gibbs said:

“Denny bounced back today. I told him, ‘That’s the old Denny.’ Leading all throughout the race and winning the race. Christopher did a good job. Chase — really good — a top 10. Ty was just outside of it and got turned. Big day for us. Just appreciate everyone here and what this means. This means a lot. Progressive—new sponsor — huge deal for us.”

The #11 Toyota driver beats his teammate Bell by an impressive margin of 4.617 seconds to take his 55th victory of his career.