“There’s just something I see”: Denny Hamlin recalls calling Brad Keselowski his second coming in NASCAR

During an appearance on the Kenny Conversation, Denny Hamlin revealed the driver he considers being his second coming in NASCAR. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver named Brad Keselowski as the next Hamlin.

As the host Kenny Wallace mentioned Jeff Gordon's infamous comments about Jimmie Johnson, Hamlin chimed in with a similar version of the story. Gordon had famously said that he recognized Johnson's talent in turn 1 at Michigan, which led him to get Rick Hendrick to sign him, after which Johnson became one of the all-time greats.

Hamlin's version of the story had a young Brad Keselowski.

"We were leaving Mexico city in the Xfinity and my crew chief at the time, Dave Rogers, he says, 'Tell me the next you. Who's the next guy?' I said, 'Brad Keselowski.' He says, 'What? The guy that's 6 laps down every race?'

"I said, 'Brad Keselowski ... when we were going around to lap him, you can see he's getting every ounce out of that car that is in it and then some.' For me, it was corners 3 & 4 at California where he was up against the wall, making time, I mean, at this time we were probably pitting them two-three laps down."

He concluded:

"But I just said, 'There's just something I see that I think he's going to be very good.' And a few years later, he got his shot.". [53:50]

It's worth mentioning that Keselowski's career in NASCAR's top flight started with a bang. In his second full-time season in the Cup Series, he won three races.

In his third year in NASCAR, Keselowski won the Cup title with five wins. Since then, the 40-year-old driver has accumulated 36 wins in the Cup Series. He's now playing double duty in NASCAR like Denny Hamlin as a driver/owner with Roush-Fenway Keselowski Racing.

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Denny Hamlin once warned Brad Keselowski to feel worried against him on the track

In 2009, after Keselowski had made contact with Hamlin in the Nationwide (Xfinity) race at Dover, Denny Hamlin sent across a warning to the JR Motorsports driver.

"He hasn't called me to reach out to say he's sorry. So as far as I'm concerned, he needs to be worried whenever I'm around," Hamlin said as per ESPN.

Responding, Keselowski said that Denny Hamlin's comments didn't bother him, and he wouldn't change the way he races around Hamlin. The #6 driver said thta Hamlin was just another race car driver for him and that he was mentally strong enough to be unfazed by whatever Hamlin said.

Keselowski emphasized that he didn't wish to have any conflict with any driver in the garage. But as far as the subject of things being unsettled, he pointed to Jimmie Johnson's mantra of being mentally tough to win races and win championships.