I found this article on that'sracin.com and it really got me to thinking.
When Denny Hamlin won at Martinsville last weekend, crew chief Mike Ford talked afterward about how his driver is an "extreme competitor" and Hamlin admitted that he's had trouble dealing with the fact that even the most successful Sprint Cup driver will lose far more often than he wins.
Hamlin is not the only driver who has had to learn that tough lesson.
"It has been really hard for me," Kasey Kahne said.
"I've had an attitude that I think I can win all the time. I think that's the only thing. If I don't win, I'm mad, there's something wrong.
"When you get to the level we're at now, it's so easy to not win races because there's so many great teams and great drivers and crew chiefs and owners and sponsors. …The reason that each driver is racing in the Sprint Cup Series is because they've won tons of races in other series."
Kahne hasn't won in his past 47 starts, and he's trying to be patient as his team is off to a better start this season.
"It is difficult," Kahne said. "I know that we're just out there going for top 15s right now and trying to stay as close to the Chase as possible until we get our cars where we know we can win races. I think we're getting closer, but we're still not there."
Hamlin is not the only driver who has had to learn that tough lesson.
"It has been really hard for me," Kasey Kahne said.
"I've had an attitude that I think I can win all the time. I think that's the only thing. If I don't win, I'm mad, there's something wrong.
"When you get to the level we're at now, it's so easy to not win races because there's so many great teams and great drivers and crew chiefs and owners and sponsors. …The reason that each driver is racing in the Sprint Cup Series is because they've won tons of races in other series."
Kahne hasn't won in his past 47 starts, and he's trying to be patient as his team is off to a better start this season.
"It is difficult," Kahne said. "I know that we're just out there going for top 15s right now and trying to stay as close to the Chase as possible until we get our cars where we know we can win races. I think we're getting closer, but we're still not there."
As a fan...I hate it when my driver loses too. As a Denny Hamlin fan, I know what he's capable of. Bristol was a heart breaker. He had it won, only to have a late caution and a fuel pump issue cost him yet another victory. It's frustrating! I can only imagine how Denny felt. I'm not sure what I would have said to him, but if I worked with him I'd make good and sure I did everything in my power to fix it. Apparently Joe, JD, Mike and all the guys at JGR agreed with me..and it worked! I was scared when JGR switched from Chevy to Toyota. Y'all know the kind of performance issues Toyota had last season. But they aren't having that problem this year. They're leaving Hendrick in the dust...making 'em look stupid. Forgive me, but I love it! I'm eating it up and laughing at their misfortune. Childish, well maybe. But one thing you need to know about me is I detest Jeff Gordon. I can tolerate Jimmie Johnson, but I hate it when the same driver wins everything. I get tired of them and want to see someone else win for a change. I'm not anti-Hendrick. I adore Casey Mears and Dale Jr., well how can you not just love Junior (I love to call him June Bug). But it's time to see some new faces in the winner's circle. David Gilliland, Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle, Martin Truex Jr, the afformentioned Casey Mears (that was a big word..whew!), Elliott Sadler, Dave Blaney, Jamie McMurray, Reed Sorenson, Jeremy Mayfield, Clint Bowyer, anyone from MWR, JJ Yeley...all faces I would love to see win. Losing is a part of racing. There can only be one winner and there will be 42 losers EVERY week. I just wish we could pick who we'd like to lose most. Good guys like Denny, Kasey and Elliott are the ones I'd like to see succeed. They're great drivers who are underappreciated. It's easy to jump on the bandwagon. Following the underdog Cinderella is a lot harder. But it's the fan that's been through the desert with you and survived the heat that can truly appreciate the hard work it took to get that checkered flag. Afterall, I'm a Denny Hamlin fan. I know the thrill of victory and I am all too familiar with the agony of defeat!
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