With 3 wins and 11 finishes inside the Top 5, Denny Hamlin is once again putting in another one of those stellar campaigns which he has done quite a few times in his career. But one thing that has painfully evaded him, despite his wonderful seasons with impressive statistics, is the ultimate prize: the championship.
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Hamlin is 42. He has 51 wins to his name, and he has been racing in the Cup Series for close to two decades now. By all accounts, he should be considered one of the sport’s all-time greats. But the argument his critics make against that claim is that Hamlin hasn’t won a championship yet.
However, this year, it will all change. At least that’s what Hamlin believes.
Denny Hamlin is convinced 2023 is his year
Many times this year, Denny Hamlin has put his name forward to become this year’s Cup champion, and 2023 could be the year he becomes a NASCAR Cup champion. Towards the end of the regular season, Hamlin claimed, “Championship, why we will? I feel I’m better than I ever had been.”
“I just think that this team is ready. We have every piece of the puzzle together to win a championship.”
More recently, following his win at Bristol in the final playoff race of the first round, he emphatically claimed, “It’s our year. I just feel we’ve got it all put together. Nothing to stop us at this point.”
He later took to his X profile to once again emphasize his point and double down on it as he wrote, “It’s our year.”
It’s our year. pic.twitter.com/ABCd8TB04B
— Denny Hamlin (@dennyhamlin) September 17, 2023
Hamlin calls out his haters after his Bristol win
During the post-race press conference at Bristol, Hamlin was asked whether there was a point where he decided to ‘play to the crowd’, or in other words, taunt the crowd who boos him every time he wins a race. “Yeah, I mean, at some point I got to realize 18 years in that I’m probably not going to win the most popular driver award,” he replied. “I’ve come to the conclusion of that. I understand it.”
Hamlin claimed that while his haters think they bother him, there’s clearly “an opposite effect.” He added, “I welcome any fan to want to come to the dark side. All five of my fans are still out there chanting my name. They’re over in turn three right now.”
The veteran ended his response with the famous quote: “A hater can’t stand a winner.”
