Denny Hamlin, former resident of Chesterfield County and a graduate of Manchester High School, is writing a weekly diary during NASCAR's Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Hamlin drives the No. 11 FedEx car for Joe Gibbs Racing.
It's always hard to be disappointed in a top-five finish, but every time this FedEx team goes to Martinsville, our objective is to win.It's a shame not to have won Sunday in a car that was that good, but we just got stuck restarting on the outside after those last few cautions.
It seemed like only the 14 (Tony Stewart) could get his car to work in the outside groove on restarts, as you saw when he passed Jimmie (Johnson) for the lead to win the race.
Whenever you're on those small, flat tracks, starting on the inside is such an advantage. When you're on the outside, you just hope you can get clear of the guy behind you on the inside, and slide down there before he can get his right front (tire) to your quarter panel.
Overall, it was a good day for our team. It could've been a lot worse if the damage was bad on that early caution. We just got collected and spun from behind, and luckily nobody behind us hit our car when I was sitting sideways on the track.
The damage to the car wasn't bad, and it actually helped us stay out a couple cautions later and gain some track position. We led a few laps and ran up front most of the day, where this team should be. It was encouraging for us.
The 99 (Carl Edwards) team did exactly what it takes to win championships on Sunday: make the most of bad days. He was a lap down for a good part of the race, and somehow managed to get back up there and finish ninth. When you don't have a car you think can win the race, you just need to get the best finish possible, and that team did it.
Others weren't so lucky, getting caught up in all of the wrecks (18) you saw. I think guys are starting to get impatient now that the end of the season is so close, and they are taking chances they normally wouldn't. Sunday's race looked like what we have been seeing on road courses lately. There was definitely a lot of beating and banging.
This week is another busy one for us. We'll be in the Dallas/Fort Worth area early for an event with FedEx and the American Red Cross, building emergency kits with school children to prepare in case of a disaster. It's a cool program and fun to be able to meet with kids in the local race communities.
Texas was a great track for us in 2010, when we won both races. Our cars were so fast and we got those breaks that you sometimes need to win. It's fun and fast and the fans are very passionate about racing there. It'll be a good show.
Want to read more of Denny's Diary? Check it out at the Richmond Times - Dispatch:
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/sports/motor-sports/denny-hamlin/
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