Denny Hamlin is one of those who climbed the ladder of NASCAR without much in the pocket save for raw talent behind the wheel. After 18 full-time seasons in the Cup Series, his place at the highest of racing orders can be denied by none. But what was the cost of this incredible achievement?
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In an interview with Kyle Petty the star talked about how his parents, Dennis and Mary Lou, were the ones behind his success story. Expressing deep gratitude for all the sacrifices that they made to put him into a race car he said, “Dad was the tough side and Mom was a little bit of the softer side. But they both made a lot of struggles and sacrifices to keep funding my racing. We had to sell off a lot of assets to buy race tires and race fuel and stuff like that.”
Selling and repairing trailers to support his family, Dennis Hamlin was someone who lived paycheck to paycheck. Despite the menial income he never hesitated to get rid of material possessions, including a beloved collection of antique cars, to make way for his son’s career. Mary Lou Hamlin reasons the sacrifices, “We wanted to give him every opportunity we could. We felt like he had what it would take to compete against the drivers.”
Dennis once talked about how he’d been told that his son making it into the Joe Gibbs Racing diversity program had a ‘1 in 10 million’ chance. How the tables turned then. Starting the engine of his go-kart at age 7, Denny raced through mini-stocks, stock cars, and late-models before ending up at the front door of Joe Gibbs holding his father’s hand to justify all that had been lost.
The influence of Dennis Hamlin on Denny’s career
Though Dennis knew early on that his son would be a great race car driver, he was aware that making it in the big leagues would be no easy job. To help the cause he instilled a strict sense of discipline and work ethic in the youngster. Talking about it, Denny said to Petty, “I think that his work ethic and no matter what the store hours say on the door you don’t leave till the last customer is gone. I think that was something that instilled in me, you know, kind of how I treat people in general.”
For all that gave him and more, Denny has repaid them many times over with his winnings, love, and respect. He stands as a man his father is proud of today. Dennis Hamlin and Mary Lou are retired and happy people fresh in the joy of their son’s engagement.
