After Contract Extension, Denny Hamlin Addresses the ‘R Word’ and What It Could Mean for Him After NASCAR

At 44 years of age, Denny Hamlin remains the lone driver still battling at the top of the NASCAR Cup Series field, and winning. With four wins already this season, Hamlin recently inked a multi-year contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing, securing his seat through 2027 and putting any doubts about his immediate future to rest.

Yet, as the Brickyard 400 approaches, the veteran is already contemplating how his final lap in NASCAR might look. Speaking ahead of the Indianapolis race, Hamlin addressed the inevitable question of retirement.

“I don’t know, I like to just see kind of where I’m at two years from right now. Just kind of where’s the team at, what’s their Plan B? Where are they at with that? And then just see how competitive I am, how good do I feel, how bad do I want,” he said.

Hamlin admitted that several factors will weigh on his decision, but one stands above the rest: he wants to leave the sport knowing he could still win his last race. He made it clear that he will not wait for his performance to decline before calling it a career.

Hamlin said, “I understand if it just happens naturally in the second half of the final year, then it just happens, but I don’t want to have to go through another season (pause) if I’m starting to tail off the end of next year, I’ll just retire.” With the freedom to exit on his terms, Hamlin intends to take a wait-and-see approach for now.

When asked what retirement might look like, Hamlin admitted he isn’t entirely sure. “I think I just need to see what retirement is like, whether I’m bored or not. I just don’t see myself as someone that is able to go from this crazy world and life that I live with all these things to then just shutting it down to zero. So, I think I need to just feel those first few months out.”

The Joe Gibbs Racing ace noted that 23XI Racing, the Cup Series team he co-owns, will play a major role in his post-driving chapter. For now, he plans to devote more time to building the organization into a yearly contender. Beyond that, he’s uncertain, joking that retirement might simply reveal how much golf he can play or how many fish he can catch in a week.

About the author

Neha Dwivedi

Neha Dwivedi is an experienced NASCAR Journalist at The SportsRush, having penned over 5500 articles on the sport to date. She was a seasoned writer long before she got into the world of NASCAR. Although she loves to see Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch win the races, she equally supports the emerging talents in the CARS Late Model and ARCA Menards Series.. For her work in NASCAR she has earned accolades from journalists like Susan Wade of The Athletic, as well as NASCAR drivers including Thad Moffit and Corey Lajoie. Her favorite moment from NASCAR was witnessing Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr. win the championship trophies. Outside the racetrack world, Neha immerses herself in the literary world, exploring both fiction and non-fiction.

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