Now in his 21st season, despite winning more than 50 races in his career, Denny Hamlin is still chasing his elusive first NASCAR championship.
When the surefire future Hall of Famer visited SPORT in New York, we had to remind him of a quote from the first episode of NASCAR’s Full Speed documentary series, in which one of the talking heads claims Hamlin “needs a championship more than he needs oxygen.” With two races left at time of publication, Hamlin still has an outside chance at the title if he can drum up some magic in consecutive weeks.
“I would say that I have on an oxygen mask,” Hamlin jokes. “I'm not on a defibrillator, I guess, quite yet.”
Chase leader Kyle Larsen could clinch on Sunday, Nov. 1 at Martinsville. Barring that outcome, the champion will be crowned at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 8 on NBC. Even if Hamlin can’t reach the mountaintop in 2026, this season has been a banner year for No. 11, leading all drivers with top five finishes, and winning four races, including notching three wins in a row.
In our conversation with Hamlin, we dove into the state of NASCAR, his collaboration as co-owner of 23XI with six-time NBA champion Michael Jordan, and why he feels like his performance is still peaking two decades into his career.
Sport Magazine: There's a really fun quote in the Full Speed show that I thought would be a great place to kick it off. [One of the talking heads] said that you “need a championship more than you need oxygen.” There are three races left in the Chase. Are you breathing right now?
Denny Hamlin: I mean, I wanted to leave Phoenix closer to the lead, which I did. But it's just the fact that we just did not finish to where our capabilities were. I would say that I have on an oxygen mask. I'm not on a defibrillator, I guess, quite yet.
How much does the pressure dial up now at this point in your career? Obviously, it’s a spot you've been in. Are you able to really soak it in, or do you still feel like those butterflies [when] you're this close to the mountaintop?
Denny Hamlin: Well, I think it's a little. I would say I'm getting a little bit more nervous, because I know I've only got, you know, two other chances to try to do this, or else it's just not going to happen. Now, I think when the day comes when I'm done, if I have it, [or if] I don't, I'll be very at peace with that. But I just know that this is a very good opportunity, and I need to try to capitalize when I can.
There have been so many highs, and some lows this season. Before we get into this final stretch, what moment from this season really stands out to you?
Denny Hamlin: I mean, getting three wins in a row was something I'd never accomplished in my career. It happened during the summer at three really strong tracks for us, and that just was a great month. I mean, it really was. And, you know, just taking over the point lead at that point when it seemed like there was no way we were going to catch Tyler Reddick at the time. As far as the lows, I would say probably for me, it was after Las Vegas.
We were just a really strong car. I had one of the previous two races there. It's an important race in the chase, and then, you know, I ended up making a mistake, spinning out, trying to get every position I can, and made a mistake there, and really cost us a good finishing position. That one was the bottom of the valley so far this year.
When you win three races in a row like that, is there a feeling of invincibility? What does that feel like? It's a pretty amazing feat.
Denny Hamlin: It feels good knowing that as old as I am, as long as I've been doing this, that every seven days I have an opportunity to win a race, and not many drivers are good enough or had that opportunity to do that. And so, I definitely don't take it for granted that I'm still at the peak of my career and my game, I feel like, and I just gotta keep riding this wave as long as I can, and capitalize when the opportunities are in front of me.
Look, you're not too old! But after two decades in NASCAR, what's the biggest challenge as a driver today? When you started, you were in a very different world. What really stands out to you from the beginning of your career to this moment in time right now?
Denny Hamlin: Well, I would say what stands out for me the most probably is the driving etiquette has changed. I mean, I just think the younger guys came up differently and do things differently, and for me, it's been a challenge to get myself to adapt when I'm competing against the younger guys. I understand that the rules are a little different than what it was when I was racing Mark Martin and Jeff Gordon and some of the greats of the sport.
So having to adapt my style has been certainly the most challenging over 21 years because it has evolved, and what was how I raced five years ago is different [from how] I raced 15 years ago, versus how I raced today. So that is just like any other sport, the game has changed.
For our readers who are more on the casual side of the NASCAR fandom, can you elaborate a little bit more about [stylistic differences] with those younger drivers?
Denny Hamlin: Well, I think the younger drivers in general are just more aggressive. I think the older guys like myself have a code and we only run into each other when it's absolutely necessary for a race win. The younger generation is like, ‘oh, I'm going to run into you for 15th place.’ And so I was always a guy when I was growing up where my parents would always say that if you break the car, you got to go fix it.
So I was always aware that if I damaged this car, my dad's going to make me fix it, and I'm probably going to have to find a way to pay for it as well. So it's just a different generation and more cutthroat now than what it's ever been. The racing is harder, but I also think that that makes it more exciting for the fans because when you have ultimately clashing styles of driving, that's when you see the wrecks and the incidents that you do.
How do you feel about the off-track fame and attention today, compared to the early 2000s when you were getting started?
Denny Hamlin: It's different because I came up in the shadows of Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Tony Stewart. When I was coming to the sport, they were in their prime, they're winning all the races, and I was just the young guy trying to figure it out. And now me being obviously the oldest guy there, I have a great relationship with NASCAR working through and thinking about rule changes, and also now owning a team with Michael Jordan. That is an opportunity for me to be part of the sport well beyond when I'm a race car driver.
So we had Jeff [Gordon] and Kyle[Larsen] in here not long after the recent leadership changes at NASCAR. We spoke with them about the competition these days for eyeballs amongst major sports. How do you look at the evolution of NASCAR and like where the sport needs to go?
Denny Hamlin: The sport is more collaborative than it's ever been. There was a reset in the offseason of the relationship of the teams in NASCAR, and it's in a good place now. There's new leadership that's obviously about enacting change first and figuring out if it works second, which I think is the right way to do it. You can wait around and wait for perfection, but you're better [off] to just make changes and see what really starts to move the needle.
I think we have that, and certainly through the things that they're doing [like] trying to grow their YouTube channel, social media, going to streaming with some of our TV partners. That's all trying to get our audience younger and younger because ultimately what we've seen is people that engage in NASCAR end up liking it, but you got to get those eyeballs on your sport first.
Credit: NASCAR
You've ramped up your social media and have a popular podcast, making yourself more accessible to the fans. When you look at something like agreeing to do the Full Speed series, that's a different level of bringing cameras into your home, having that be a part of your family life. What were the conversations like amongst your family and the decision to do that?
Denny Hamlin: Well, I knew that it was a big, pivotal moment in getting lots of eyeballs like I'm talking about, especially international ones on our sport. And so my rule of thumb generally to producers of the Full Speed documentary was that the answer is yes, unless I tell you no. So always assume the answer is yes. And ultimately I knew that some of the tough moments that maybe I didn't look the best were gonna be best for TV.
You have to give them access to that so they can see who you are. You can't always make sure that your image looks just right. That's boring. So it's inviting them in when you go through a tough race and, you know, you're emotional with the family and the kids are upset. Like that's really what people connect to is the imperfection of maybe their favorite driver. And I thought that that was a key moment for us to have such a big role in it.
One part of the show that really stood out to me was the custom bowling alley in your home, Victory Lane, having photos of your entire career all over the walls. Photography has been at the heart of Sport Magazine since 1946, and we’ve had so many great chats with athletes showing them photos that spark lost memories that appeared in print over the years. I'm curious if there are photos in Victory Lane you gravitate towards that really capture a time and place in your career?
Denny Hamlin: For me personally,when I look back, it could be family photos or victories or whatever it might be. When I look back at the picture and I take myself back to that moment, there are other things that are not in that picture that I remember. And it spurs other memories that make it super exciting for me to kind of reminisce about that.
I look back at the old photos and I brought on my own social team back in 2019 because I knew that that was gonna be a big part of growing your brand going forward. And so there are tons of pictures that are out there that I've never seen. It's gonna be great to go back and think about those times because we can't go back. And once I decide to turn the spigot off of NASCAR racing and I'm done as a driver, it's over.
I've got a son now, he's a one year old, and he's not going to really know or remember me as a race car driver, but those moments were important to capture to let him know what his dad used to do.
I was really fascinated by the Coronado race and NASCAR experimenting with a scenic and historic location . I was curious to hear your thoughts on how that experience went and if there are other unique spots that you feel like would be a great fit for future races?
Denny Hamlin: Listen, I'm probably the biggest critic of road course racing and I like it the least of maybe anyone in the field, but that was an absolutely great event and something that was so good that they're gonna be back next year as well. And it looks like something military based going forward. So I loved, you know, the Chicago street race that they brought. Those were stuff that was just so different for us and it forced us drivers to adapt to a new environment.
We get so used to running the same tracks, we get comfortable. So I liked it because it brought the NASCAR races to a town or a city that we otherwise don't have a lot of eyeballs watching us week in week out. So we brought the racing to them. And what the hope is is that they get interested, they enjoy their time and now they keep up with it on TV or when the races come back next year. So I really liked that initiative that NASCAR is doing with the street races and I think that's gonna continue.
What does the prep look like for a race like that?
Denny Hamlin: Yeah, I mean, just like any other sport, we look at film, our practice is in the simulator, it's not on the real field, but we have simulators that are just like airline pilots, it's as real as it possibly can get. So the difference for us is when we go to a new course like that, I spend weeks practicing it because I don't know the turns, I don't know how to approach them.
And so it's just a lot different than what I'm going to say, a Talladega or a Martinsville that I've been to 40 plus times. I only need an afternoon of prep during the week of simulator time to get ready for it, where I put in weeks worth of time to get ready for a new course.
Can you drive Pocono in your sleep at this point?
Denny Hamlin: Of course, yes. Eyes closed. Backwards.
I wanted to ask about your co-ownership of 23XI with Michael Jordan. When you think back to maybe those earlier conversations with Michael, what were the characteristics you saw that made you think this is a great fit, not only for myself, but NASCAR?
Denny Hamlin: I thought that if I couldn't make the business of NASCAR work with Michael Jordan as a partner, it would never ever work. So I just think that it puts me in the best possible scenario. You know, NASCAR team ownership is a commercial business. It relies heavily on sponsorship. If I can't lean on those relationships, then it's never going to work. So that gave me a leg up there. And then I knew through talking to him that he was gonna let me have the reins on the race team to run it as I see fit.
So he sits back and he's a race fan. Now he has lots of questions and he does have input on it. But when it comes to the day to day, the personnel, the people that we hire, he lets me handle all that. If we're gonna own an NBA team together, I'm not gonna give him advice on which player he should sign, right? So I think that it works because of, you know, the autonomy that he has given me in that ownership.
You’re still racing for Joe Gibbs Racing while also co-owner of a totally separate team. How does that dynamic sort of play out with Michael and like kind of the broader team, especially now as we’re deep into the Chase season?
Denny Hamlin: It started with a conversation with Toyota because it wouldn't be possible unless you had the manufacturer lined up that's going to support you as well. So it started with a relationship with Toyota and then, you know, truthfully, I asked Joe Gibbs Racing, is there an opportunity for me to have an ownership stake here? Obviously, this was a family business, and that wasn't really a possibility. So I decided to start my own race team.
And so at that point, I'm having conversations with Joe, [about] how can [we], since I'm going to still be racing here, join forces and take our resources, put it all in one pile, and then make all of our cars better? And that was something that worked for him. And it's been such a successful alliance that we've had between the two teams. An alliance means we share technical information, aerodynamic information, and set ups of race cars.
And it's just been a great partnership that has allowed us to take what was a four-car team at Joe Gibbs Racing and expand it to seven Toyota cars. But we still compete against each other on Sundays.
Given all the accomplishments in NASCAR, how would winning a title re-shape your legacy, if at all?
Denny Hamlin: I think it's the cherry on top for me. I have won way more races than I ever would have imagined. I mean, I didn't even think I'd be at this level, but it would be a nice perk. It really would. I would venture to say though, from the outside perspective, five years from now, whether I have one or not, I don't think the public's vision of me will change one way or another.
I think that the sample size is big enough that we've been on top of our game now for 21 years. The performance is as good as it ever has been now. So I think we've kind of solidified where we're at in our sport.