Kevin Harvick calls for bold approach from Denny Hamlin as playoffs progress - "I don't want to see them counting points"

Kevin Harvick has touched upon Denny Hamlin's recent playoffs form and asked the Joe Gibbs Racing driver to pull up his socks and start delivering better performances. Hamlin barely survived the round of 16, and now stands with +7 points ahead of the round of 12 race at Kansas. Amid this, Harvick wants to see a bold approach from Hamlin and company.

Hamlin entered the playoff as one of the favorites to win the NASCAR Cup Series title. However, his performances at Atlanta and Watkins Glen put him on the back foot. The JGR driver started his Atlanta race from 38th position and crossed the finish line in 24th.

At Watkins Glen, he qualified 22nd and came home in 23rd place. This put him below the cut-line and with just one race in hand (Bristol), he needed to deliver a phenomenal performance to stay afloat. In the end, he delivered at Bristol.

Hamlin started the Bass Pro Shops Night Race from eighth place and finished it in fourth place, and saved his championship-winning opportunity. However, Harvick believes that is not how Hamlin should perform, as he wants to win the title. The former NASCAR driver spoke about this in the latest Happy Hour podcast.

"I want to see Denny Hamlin and Chris Gabehart (Hamlin's Crew Chief), those guys are, those guys are offense players. I want to see them on offense. I want to see them battling for the lead, pushing the pace of the race, controlling the race. Doing what they have to do, especially when we get to Talladega. I don't want to see Denny Hamlin counting points, and I still feel like they did what they had to do this weekend."

"But I still see them up there battling with Kyle Larson and taking the chances to win the races instead of counting points. I just, I don't believe that that's the way you're going to win the championship with Denny Hamlin and I think that they know that and they got their b***s scared over the first two rounds in the way they raced at Atlanta, and the things that happened at Watkins Glen."

Kevin Harvick added:

"Denny still having to answer all the charter questions in the media center. So I think they went to Bristol, Denny looked focused and Chris, you know you had the camera on Chris that whole race. I know, I believe those guys can go out there and you know smash them into the ground." (00:24-01:23)

Denny Hamlin started his 2024 in style after he took the pole position at Busch Light Clash and won the race. This not only helped him qualify for the playoffs but also provided him with a much-needed impetus for the rest of the season.

---

How did Denny Hamlin perform at Kansas, Talladega, and Charlotte?

Denny Hamlin (11) drives during the Go Bowling at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. Credit: Imagn Images

NASCAR is all set to host the three Round of 12 races at Kansas, Talladega, and Charlotte in September and October. As Denny Hamlin needs to extract out optimum performance with his #11 Toyota Camry CSE, here's how he performed when NASCAR held regular season races this year at these tracks.

Hamlin qualified in 14th for the Kansas Speedway race and improved nine places to finish in fifth. At Talladega, Hamlin started 23rd and ended up in 37th place. Lastly at Charlotte, he qualified in 11th place and came home in fifth.

In a nutshell, Denny Hamlin took three wins during the regular season and claimed four pole positions, 10 top-fives, and 13 top-10s. His average starting position is 11.379, and his average finish position is 15.207.