Denny Hamlin showed up in Phoenix prepared to climb behind the wheel of the No. 18 DLP Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Because the team has run a limited schedule, it fell into the go-or-go-home category of qualifying. Hamlin had to make the show on speed or he wasn't guaranteed a starting spot for the Hefty Odor Block 200. Strange for a team that has won so many races in the Nationwide Series but true none the less.
Never doubt the horsepower of a JGR Toyota or it's incumbent veteran Denny Hamlin. He is a flat course ace and he showed his true talents when he laid down the fastest lap and started from the Pole for that afternoon's race. A modest Hamlin displayed minimal excitement about his stellar qualifying performance and instead wanted teammate Joey Logano to be the shining star for the Gibbs' stable and capture the Manufacturer's title for his owners. Isn't that just like Denny Hamlin to direct the spotlight on someone else. A gesture that is honorable and well acknowledged but there are moments to be proud of and Hamlin deserved his own props.
Hamlin looked poised to dominate the field after leading the first 24 laps of the 201 lap event in the land of the rising sun. After Hamlin’s first stint at the front of the 43-car field, the driver of the No. 18 DLP HDTV Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing relinquished the lead for only three laps to pit for tires and fuel before reasserting his presence at the top spot.
Hamlin led the next 38 circuits around the 1-mile oval before making his second scheduled pit stop on lap 66 during a caution period. It was there where Hamlin’s race-winning effort drifted off course, for there was a miscue in the pits that forced him back down pit road one lap later.
A miscommunication between the crew and the crew chief saw scuffs put on the front of the car while stickers were put on the back of the car. Due to a cut tire in practice, the 18 team was already short a set in an already limited number of tires in the Nationwide series and conservation was a definite must. The problem saw Hamlin come back down pit road to change rear tires and put him back in 25th position.
The ordeal dropped Hamlin all the way to 25th when the race restarted on lap 71. While a win seemed improbable, a strong finish did not. Hamlin rallied his way into the top-10 by lap 114 and cracked the top-five on lap 134.
Running in fourth when the race’s final caution flag waved on lap 194, Hamlin pitted for four tires and fuel, while those ahead of him – Carl Edwards, Kevin Harvick and Hamlin’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Joey Logano – stayed out. Also staying out was rookie Landon Cassill, who took over the fourth spot when the race restarted on lap 199. For the two-lap shootout to the finish, Hamlin slotted in at fifth, and suddenly, with four fresh tires compared to the race-worn slicks of those in front of him, a win appeared within reach.
Hamlin picked off Cassill and Logano on lap 199, and jettisoned Harvick for second on lap 200 while still needing less than a lap to take the win from Edwards. But time was not on Hamlin’s side. As he drove off turn four and chased down Edwards, the checkered flag waved, with Edwards able to stay ahead of the hard-charging Hamlin.
“We were beside him at the finish,” said Hamlin, who now four top-five finishes in eight career Nationwide Series starts at Phoenix. “I was pretty confident. You have to pass every car smooth after the restart. You have to have every opening and everything. We had an opportunity and came up short. It was still a great run by this DLP team. I’m glad to be in this car.”
With the second-place finish, the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing entry, which has won 10 times already this season, moved up one spot to 22nd in the series’ owner standings with 3,347 points.
Quite an impressive run for Denny Hamlin and his No. 18 DLP Toyota. At some point I hope that the incumbent leader of the JGR stables realizes that he is a talented driver with abilities that even he hasn't realized yet. Humility is an admirable quality but self-defeating statements are of no benefit to anyone, especially Hamlin.
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