“They gave me everything I needed”: Denny Hamlin reacts after bottling the lead in Homestead’s final laps

Denny Hamlin reflected on losing the lead at Homestead-Miami Speedway. With three laps to go, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver was running up front, well poised to win. However, he could only manage a P3.

Although visibly disappointed, Hamlin did not blame his team. Instead, he told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports that his team had given him everything he needed to maintain his position. He was just not fast enough to do it.

"I wasn't really great on the short run all day but they (the No. 11 crew) gave me everything I needed there to get the lead and I just wasn't able to hold it," Hamlin said.

Hamlin now sits fifth in the driver standings with 4092 points to his name; 18 points below the cutline. The Tampa, Florida native has just one race to qualify for this year's Championship 4. There are two ways to do it; win to get in or gather enough points to frog-jump Kyle Larson, who is 11 points ahead of him in the playoff picture.

Nevertheless, Denny Hamlin has already made Championship 4 as an owner. Tyler Reddick, who drives the No. 45 Toyota Camry for Hamlin's Cup Series team, 23XI Racing, won at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It was the third win for the 28-year-old driver this season.

Reddick will make his career's first Championship 4 appearance this year at Phoenix Raceway on November 10. Fans can watch the coveted race live on NBC or listen to live radio updates on MRN and SiriusXM from 3 PM ET onwards.

"Driver first": Denny Hamlin sends a clear message stating priorities

Denny Hamlin has been quite successful both as a driver and a team owner. As a driver, the 43-year-old speedster flaunts 54 Cup Series wins including victories in crown jewel events like the Daytona 500, the Southern 500, and the Coca-Cola 600.

On the other hand, 23XI Racing, which is only four years old, seems to be giving bigshot organizations like Hendrick Motorsports, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Team Penske a solid run for their money in the playoffs. Safe to say, fans expected Hamlin to be impressed with Tyler Reddick after the latter won his way into the final four.

"Mentally, you can't really put yourself in that place quite yet. Still soaking into the drivers's side of it but certainly happy for the team," Hamlin told Bob Pockrass.

Noting how Reddick defeated Hamlin towards the end of the race, Dave Burns of NBC Sports asked the latter during a post-race interview,

"The booth was noticing the strength of your lap appeared to be corner exit," Burns said. "How'd you feel about it and will it hold?"

"Uh, no," Hamlin replied. "The 45 (Tyler Reddick) got us there."

"Yeah, the 45 got you," Burns said, pointing at the success of Reddick.

"Yeah, all good," Hamlin laughed.

"But that's good for you, too," the reporter suggested.

Hamlin corrected Burns, saying:

"Yeah, driver first!"

Despite his array of accolades, the one thing missing from Hamlin's resume is a Cup Series championship. Drivers younger than him have won the title, but Hamlin has yet to do so.

The closest Hamlin has been to winning the series title was in 2020 when he finished second in the Championship race, while Hendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott took home the ultimate honor.