Being awarded a Grandfather’s clock for winning last Sunday’s NASCAR Cup race at Martinsville Speedway had a double meaning of sorts for Denny Hamlin.
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It was Hamlin’s 55th career win and his sixth at Martinsville, finally snapping a 10-year winless streak since his previous win at the .526-mile paperclip-shaped short track.
But the massive Grandfather’s Clock – it stands seven feet tall and weighs several hundred pounds – is also quite appropriate in that it not only was a unique trophy for Hamlin, but also an object that the Virginia native can check to see how much time he has left in his racing career.
Hamlin has, maybe, two to three years left driving the #11 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. However, there’s also the possibility that Hamlin ‘retires’ from JGR and then runs his final season in NASCAR for the team he co-owns with NBA icon Michael Jordan, namely, 23XI Racing.
Hamlin is no fool. He knows he’s getting old. In fact, Hamlin is currently the oldest full-time driver on the NASCAR Cup circuit. After his win at Martinsville, Hamlin spoke about why it seems drivers who get older just don’t have the same kind of success, as in winning races, that they had earlier in their career.
But that’s not the case for him. When it comes to every race he starts, his goal is the same: he’s in it to win it. “It felt like the old days,” Hamlin said of Sunday’s win in an astute and confident manner. “We’re just trying to get better and turn back the clock.”
When asked to elaborate further, he added, “I probably am the king of irrational confidence. I mean, generally speaking, I know that when I got the car to do it, I can be the best, so I haven’t felt like I’ve held back the car at any point.”
“Certainly, I’m not immune to understanding that Father Time is undefeated. Everything that I need to be good to be a race car driver is still really sharp. I feel like (stopping racing) hasn’t happened yet. It will, but not yet,” he added.
“You learn to appreciate (each win) a little bit more. When you’re just in your 30s or something and have such a long runway ahead of you, you think, ‘We’ll go win next week and the week after that.
“However, many more races I’m going to win between now and the end, I’m going to value them just a little bit more from perspective, wisdom you have, and understanding the value of it and how hard it is to do.”
Crew Chief Chris Gayle Uses Hamlin’s Age As An Asset
Hamlin’s new crew chief, Chris Gayle, is well aware of the time limit his aging driver has. But at the same time, a win like Hamlin’s triumph at Martinsville can be somewhat of a fountain of youth or a form of career reinvigoration.
“I’ve watched for seven weeks in, six weeks in, (and) some of the off-season,” Gayle said in Sunday’s post-race press conference. “I’ve been surprised at how hard he does work. I think that’s what he’ll tell you. As he’s gotten older, he’s had to almost ramp up the amount of work he’s done, where he may have gotten by earlier without doing that.”
Hamlin has long been known for his fiery competitiveness, his fender-to-fender racing style that is reminiscent of the late Dale Earnhardt, and also his unfiltered, free-form way of answering questions by the media.
And as long as Hamlin continues doing what he did at Martinsville, he’s far from ready to trade his driver’s seat for a rocking chair in retirement.
Sure, he may have 55 wins now, but it could be 56 wins as early as this Sunday at Darlington, where he’s won four times in his career, and just keep visiting victory lane.
“(Hamlin) still has a drive and determination to win,” Gayle said. “It’s probably no secret. You’ve seen the wins. He wants to get beyond 60 wins. There’s still goals left for him at this age. It’s one thing to say that you want to get there and talk about it, but I’m starting to see the amount of effort he puts in. He’s with us in the simulator at least six to seven hours a week.”
“He probably doesn’t have to. Some of the other guys don’t. He does it to be a part of the team, help grow the process completely. I think that just speaks to where his head’s at at this age,” said Gayle.
