Denny Hamlin faced a crushing defeat in the 2025 Cup Series after failing to win the championship. As he recovers from this failure in the weeks following the season finale, he has little space to do so with the trial date (December 1) for the antitrust lawsuit 23XI Racing filed against NASCAR fast approaching. Despite the tight and high-pressure schedule, he is determined to find some time for himself.
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Hamlin admitted in an interview with Racing America that the 2025 loss took too much out of him and that he must find a way to rejuvenate his spirit. However, he is aware that he cannot make any solid vacation plans right now with the trial date coming up.
“I don’t have any plans. Usually, I have some kind of plans at some point, but obviously, with the pending litigation and stuff, I don’t know whether I’ll be in town or not. So, that stuff is obviously kind of fluid. But I’m going to take some time and go on a vacation at some point. I certainly need it very, very badly. Other than that, just spending more time at home,” he said,
Professionals who are a part of the NASCAR Cup Series system travel extensively throughout the year. They seldom get enough time to spend with their families. Hamlin is no exception to this. Which is why he greatly desires to spend the offseason with his family.
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver added, “Being able to now make more of my daughter’s volleyball games is going to be exciting for her. Molly has gymnastics and stuff that I get to go see now. I’ll just spend most of my time with them, and be a fan of them versus the other way around, like they are for me for 38 weeks.”
Hamlin was recently spotted at the Amelia Motor Raceway in rural Virginia along with his daughter, Taylor. The track is where his racing career began at the age of 8, driving karts. The abrupt visit to where it all began is seen as a step that he has taken towards remembering why he started racing in the first place. He needs to do so after the heartbreak he has suffered.
Perhaps mixed with the time he is going to spend with his family, it will help him be stronger than ever when he gets back into the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE again in 2026. A positive outcome on the ongoing litigation would serve a strong role in recovering his mental health as well.
