Press Releases Following Lifelock 400 ~ Michigan

Better luck for Hamlin

Denny Hamlin's third-place finish was his first in the top10 since April.
"We definitely need to get back on track," Hamlin said. "We need to start building. We've got to get back to solid finishes and make sure we solidify our place in the Chase and we don't have to race our way in going into Richmond."

Hamlin climbed two spots to 10th in the points with his performance.

DENNY HAMLIN
No. 11 FedEx Toyota Camry ~ Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 3rd

How was your run today? "I hate running like that, but that's what you have to do to get to the end. I'm just proud of our whole FedEx Express team. We worked on fuel mileage a little bit during testing at other race tracks and it paid off here at Michigan. For the most part, it was a solid day. We had a top-four or top-five car all day, and it paid off at the end."

How did you feel about it ending up a fuel-mileage race? "I don't know. I think we were pretty good. I kicked myself for not running harder because I was rolling the 'five-in' (throttle) pretty big at the end. But, I think it was just a bait thing. I think the 16 (Greg Biffle) baited the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) to come get him, and they ended up both running out of fuel. We were all in the same boat there, it's just who wanted to risk winning the race versus finishing. I think that's what happened."

What were you thinking at the end of the race? "I was just thinking how much I though I saved during the course of the run. I definitely feel like I probably could've pushed harder. I'm really curious to see how much we have left in the tank to see next time in that situation I could have ran a little bit harder."

Is it a good feeling to rebound strong after last week? "It is. We got a new race car here. We were strong all day. We had a top-five car all day. So, it's good to finally finish where we belong. I'm proud of this whole FedEx Express team. We were definitely a car that could contend for a top-two or top-three spot all day. It feels good to finally come out of here with a finish we deserve."

What did you think about the race finish? "It's tough as a driver to go out there and not run as hard as what you want to. When these races just seem to come down to fuel mileage a lot. We worked on it a little bit with our race team and I think I worked on it as a driver and got better. But, I was willing to 'five-in' (throttle) there at the end. I felt like I was running a little bit too hard. So, I let the 24 (Jeff Gordon) go and it turns out the front two (Greg Biffle and Jimmie Johnson) baited each other into running out of gas."

Michigan: 3rd finisher press conference
Racing series -- NASCAR-CUP
Date -- 2009-06-14
LifeLock 400 Post-Race Transcript

An interview with: DENNY HAMLIN - 3rd finisher

KERRY THARP: We'll roll right into our post race press conference at Michigan International Speedway. Our third place finisher in today's race is Denny Hamlin. He drives the No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Denny is now 10th in championship points standings.

Denny, talk about how you ran out there today and how things unfolded there towards the end.

DENNY HAMLIN: Well, we had a good car all day. We fought a little track position for the most part. But we were a top five car all day. We felt like a third to fourth place car for the most part. We knew the last run, I think we were about two laps shy. I worked on some things, some road course testing, what not, to try to save fuel. I felt pretty confident that we could save those two laps.

I felt like as a driver I was really conservative. I'd be interested to see what we have left in the tank because I know I was really rolling down that 5 there about 10 to go. I just thought, man, it's kind of not worth it. If the 48 and the 16 don't run out, what's the point of trying to catch this 5? Little do you know it's for the race win.

But I think it's just the 16 and 48 kind of baited each other into running hard, and that's what happened.

KERRY THARP: Questions for Denny Hamlin.

Q: Denny, is it kind of disappointing to go back to back fuel mileage races as a driver? Is that tough when you get out there and they come on and say you have to start saving?

DENNY HAMLIN: Yeah, it is. But, I mean, it does put the driver in it, for sure. I mean, when we're all short, and I'm pretty sure that everyone was short, without having to save gas on the racetrack, it puts it in the drivers' hands in the sense of how hard do you want to push it versus how much do you want to save.

You know, it is still a driver's race, even though it is a fuel mileage race.

Q: Can you talk about this finish as far as your season. It's been not remarkable. This is a big boost for you guys.

DENNY HAMLIN: It is. You know, we definitely had a hard couple of weeks, for sure. But we definitely need to get back on track. We need to start building. If we're not 13th, I don't know with Mark winning, but we got to get back to solid finishes and make sure we solidify our place in the Chase and we don't have to race our way in going into Richmond.

You know, we had to finish pretty well at Richmond last year to make sure we got in the Chase. And that's just a gut wrenching feeling you don't want to have to go through.

We feel like our performance is pretty good. We feel like we're a little bit behind the Hendrick cars. Obviously, I mean, if Kyle is not up front, then our stuff is not the best. And it's definitely not the best right now. We're a little bit behind. But, you know, we feel like in due time we got some things that we're working on to try to be better than those guys. Right now it's just catch up mode.

KERRY THARP: Denny, thank you very much.
-credit: nascar

Hamlin, Fed Ex Racing Storm To Second At Bristol

Once again – and for the third time in three races at Bristol Motor Speedway - Denny Hamlin drove the #11 FedEx Toyota forward from a mid-pack start into a battle for the win before ultimately finishing a Bristol career-best of second in Sunday’s Food City 500.

The second-place finish keeps a string of great runs at Bristol alive. One year ago, Hamlin held the lead before fuel pickup problems left him in sixth place, and last fall Hamlin and the FedEx team put together a solid race to finish third.

“We had a long-run car today - we didn’t have that short run car when we needed it at the end,” explained Hamlin after the event. “There were about 300,000 FedEx employees that were hoping that we were going to get a win today, I'm just trying to get a win for them but we came up a little bit short.

Congratulations to Kyle (Busch). It’s great to get a one-two finish for Joe Gibbs Racing and just can’t thank this whole team enough. A good job on pit road today, very solid. We feel like we deserve to be in victory lane and hopefully we’ll get that done next week,”

Hamlin’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Kyle Busch took the checkered flag after a long battle with Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson to make it a one-two JGR finish. The third JGR car, driven by Joey Logano, experienced engine problems late in the race and was scored in 38th place.

The second-place finish marks Hamlin’s best results of the still-young 2009 season and sees him jump from 14th to eighth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings through six races. The series now heads to Martinsville Speedway, a favorite track of Hamlin and the site of his most-recent Cup Sseries win.

From the drop of the green flag, Hamlin charged forward and quickly erased the memory of qualifying 24th from his mind. As he was putting most of the competition in his rear view mirror, the only problem the team encountered was a rising water temperature – a problem that was exacerbated when the yellow came out and the field was slowed.

By lap 55 Hamlin had cracked the top 20 and ran in 16th place but things were about to even get better for the #11FedEx Express team. On lap 64, with the team scored in 15th place, Crew Chief Mike Ford called Hamlin onto pit road and opted for a two tire change in effort to gain track position. The decision paid off for the FedEx team as Hamlin gained five sports and lined up to restart tenth.

Hamlin continued to carve his way through the field, claiming sixth place on lap 100, fifth on lap 110, and fourth place on lap 111 – all while turning the quickest laps of any car on the track.
When the caution flew on lap 123 Hamlin was running fourth and was very happy with the way his car felt. The crew made no chassis adjustments and a very quick stop by the FedEx team had Hamlin out to restart third behind leader Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson in second place.On lap 130 Hamlin claimed second from Johnson after a fierce, multi-lap duel with the three-time Sprint Cup Champion.

On lap 191, Hamlin made his fourth pit stop of the afternoon; this time Ford calling for four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment to in hopes of chasing down Busch and Johnson – the main rivals all afternoon. A long green-flag run ensued with Hamlin chasing Johnson for the second spot. On lap 300 Hamlin took over the runner-up spot from Johnson and set his sights on Busch and on lap 317 Hamlin moved to the point, dicing through lapped traffic to take the lead from his JGR teammate.

Hamlin’s lead would be short-lived, however, as the yellow came out on lap 319 and he pitted from the lead on lap 321 for four tires, fuel and a track-bar adjustment. Jimmie Johnson beat Hamlin out of the pits to retake the lead with Hamlin lined up in second.

Hamlin continued to run second to Johnson until lap 359 when JGR teammate Kyle Busch assumed the second spot. With 100 laps remaining in the Food City 500 Hamlin was in third place, 1.8 seconds behind then-leader Jimmie Johnson.

The FedEx Express team rose to the occasion on the final pit stop of the afternoon as Hamlin pulled onto pit road on lap 444. Hamlin came in third and pulled out in second –right behind teammate Kyle Busch – and it was a position he would hold for the remainder of the race.

On lap 495 a small window of opportunity opened for Hamlin to make one last charge for the win when Joey Logano experienced engine problems and brought out the final yellow of the day to set up a green-white-checkered finish. However Busch was very strong on the restart and Hamlin was forced to hold off a charging Jimmie Johnson to take second.

Food City 500 - Bristol - Results

The Offical results of the Food City 500 - Bristol
~ Race 5 of 36 ~

1. 18 Kyle Busch
2. 11 Denny Hamlin
3. 48 Jimmie Johnson
4. 24 Jeff Gordon
5. 9 Kasey Kahne
6. 5 Mark Martin
7. 39 Ryan Newman
8. 31 Jeff Burton
9. 42 Juan Montoya
10. 47 Marcos Ambrose
11. 2 Kurt Busch
12. 00 David Reutimann
13. 33 Clint Bowyer
14. 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr
15. 99 Carl Edwards
16. 44 A J Allmendinger
17. 14 Tony Stewart - 1
18. 28 Travis Kvapil - 1
19. 12 David Stremme -1
20. 19 Elliott Sadler - 1
21. 7 Robby Gordon - 2
22. 96 Bobby Labonte - 2
23. 43 Reed Sorenson - 2
24. 07 Casey Mears - 2
25. 98 Paul Menard - 2
26. 1 Martin Truex Jr - 2
27. 6 David Ragan - 3
28. 82 Scott Speed - 3
29. 83 Brian Vickers - 4
30. 29 Kevin Harvick - 4
31. 77 Sam Hornish Jr - 4
32. 55 Michael Waltrip - 6
33. 17 Matt Kenseth - 6
34. 34 John Andretti - 8
35. 8 Aric Almirola - 9
36. 71 David Gilliland - 10
37. 26 Jamie McMurray - 12
38. 20 Joey Logano - Engine
39. 16 Greg Biffle - Engine
40. 09 Sterling Marlin - Engine
41. 87 Joe Nemechek - Rear End
42. 64 Todd Bodine - Accident
43. 66 Dave Blaney - Steering

D Ham in the ATL

Martinsville is a distant memory and D Ham is heading for the bright lights of the ATL and Atlanta Motorspeedway. He came away with a solid Top 5 finish that helped boost his confidence and proved that once again you can't keep the Virginia boy down at his home track.

When I talked to Denny on Monday, he had some pretty interesting questions to answer for me and I want to share those with you. I have to keep the wheel man on his toes and this week I certainly did just that!

Becca: What happened with the car? I heard mention that the car was really loose in practice and that perhaps the team tightened it up just a bit too much. Please tell me about that.
Denny: Well yes the car was loose during practice and it was just to free for us. The crew tightened it up for us but it was just to tight and hard for us to turn the corners. We finally got it adjusted the way that we needed it during a pit stop.

Becca: Rain once again cancelled qualifying and cost valuable practice time. What are your thoughts on that?
Denny: We were pretty disappointed that it rained out most of practice and qualifying. We felt we could have gotten a better starting position and we just feel like we were robbed of that because of weather.

Becca: What is your favorite TV Show?
Denny: I don't really get much time to watch tv but when I do I like to watch CSI and Family Guy.

Becca: What is your biggest pet peeve? For me it's people who are late...what's yours?
Denny: I would have to say people that are rude.

Becca: What is your favorite number? (Mine is 11..hmmm....wonder why? HA HA)
Denny: haha I don't really have a favorite number but I guess I would have to say 11 too. It is the best number ever made right? haha

Becca: Atlanta is next in the Chase, what is your track record at Atlanta? How do you feel about your chances there?
Denny: I feel that we are pretty good there. Depending on how the weather treats us this weekend and how the car handles I say we will get a decent finish.

Becca: If you could ask ME 2 questions what would you like to ask me?
Denny: Why you think I'm so special and How did you end up knowing so much about NASCAR?

~Alright D Ham...here's the answer to those two questions....

1. Why do I think you're so special? Because as a rookie in 2006, you won the Bud Shootout against NASCAR's fastest and finest. You came back from being laps down at Pocono to win your first race, you don't wreck race cars or crash people to win and you're a gentleman. You have talent that impresses me and you drive for the best owners in the sport. On the personal side, there isn't a kinder, more thoughtful, genuine man on this planet let alone in the sport of NASCAR. I don't need to tell you my reasons lately because you already know them, but when I look at you I see your heart and the man behind the race car driver. I really like that... it's rare and quite valuable.

2. How did I end up knowing so much about NASCAR? Well, I've watched racing since I was 7 years old. Cars are my passion and I thirst for knowledge about them. I read books, watch TV shows, listen to Tim Brewer who has become my new best friend, I can't listen to him enough, and I just pay attention. I ask a lot of questions, when I don't understand something I search it on the internet or ask someone who would know. I eat, sleep and breathe racing. I can't drive a race car but that doesn't mean I can't know about them. It's my love.

Becca: Who was the driver I followed just before your Rookie season when I became your biggest fan?
Denny: There you go testing my memory! You know my memory is horrible haha. Umm.....lets see..I gotta think about this.....Elliot Sadler. haha

Now my D Ham is in the ATL and he's running a Craftsman Truck Series race in the # 15 Toyota. Billy Ballew Motorsports officials said Monday that Sprint Cup driver Denny Hamlin will drive the team’s No. 15 Toyota in this weekend’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Hamlin has driven in two Truck series races for Ballew, including one earlier this year at Martinsville, where he started second and finished 21st.

“I consider Billy a good friend, and this is a home race for him,” Hamlin said. “I’ve watched the trucks at Atlanta, and it’s a wild race. I’ve actually watched it from Billy’s suite at the track, and it just looks like fun, so when he asked if I was interested, I jumped at the chance. “I’ve been in the trucks before, not many times, but enough to get a feel for them and to know this will be a totally different race from what I’ve done before. I raced trucks at Texas, but that was four years ago, so I am sure it will take a couple of laps to get back in the swing of it. After that, it’s just trying to find the comfort level and be competitive."Hamlin, who drives Joe Gibbs Racing’s No. 11 Toyota in the Cup series, has made eight Truck starts, with a best finish of eighth at Martinsville two years ago.

Rain set into Atlanta and once again forced NASCAR to cancel qualifying and set the field according to points. Hamlin will roll out 11th and should have a really good shot at a good finish. I just finished watching NCTS practice and Denny was way too tight and the team will need some adjustments before race time. Regardless, I am excited to see Denny in a Truck at Atlanta. He will start 20th next to Donny Lia after their qualifying was also rained out. NASCAR elected to make the qualifying session a much needed practice time which was in my opinion, one of the wisest choices they have made in quite a while.

I'm growing ever so tired of rain and truly believe NASCAR needs to make a change to their qualifying rules. But then again, since the pole position no longer matters, there really isn't much of a point to the whole thing. When NASCAR changed the Bud Shootout rules it made winning a pole position pointless, literally and figuratively. As a die-hard race fan, I want to see the cars on the track as often as possible. And with the amount of money race teams are putting into simply attempting to make a race, something has to change. But I've lost my focus and I need to rope this back in and talk about Denny Hamlin.

Atlanta is very special to me and I am excited about seeing my hero race there this weekend. But it is also kinda sad because the season is rapidly winding down and then I will have the long, cold winter without my favorite driver every weekend. But I guess even Superman needs a rest. Made of steel or not, Denny Hamlin deserves some time off. But not quite yet.... Boogity Boogity Boogity....Let's Go Racing Boys!!!!