NASCAR: A Denny Hamlin victory may cost him a championship

As a seasoned NASCAR enthusiast with decades of racing under my belt, I can’t help but feel a pang of familiarity when I see Denny Hamlin once again chasing that elusive first championship. The No. 11 Toyota driver has been a consistent contender for years, and it seems like the stars are always aligning just enough to keep him at arm’s length from the coveted title.

After yet another 34 nail-biting races, I find myself right where I’ve been before in October, chasing my very first NASCAR Cup Series title with Joe Gibbs Racing as Denny Hamlin. This could be the year it all changes!

In simpler terms, the driver of car number 11 in the Toyota series is currently 18 points short of qualifying for the Championship 4. Only the race this coming Sunday afternoon at Martinsville Speedway remains on the calendar, and then the championship finale takes place at Phoenix Raceway the following weekend.

On the final two laps of last Sunday’s race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Hamlin was in the lead and seemed set to secure a place in the championship-deciding event. However, he ended up finishing third, and it now seems likely that he must win this weekend’s Xfinity 500 to qualify for the Championship 4 again, which has been his goal since 2021.

Ironically, he’d be in a better position to advance had he not won one of the three races he won earlier in the year.

Back in March, I snagged a win at Bristol Motor Speedway, just another checkered flag to add to my collection. But then, around five months later, something unusual happened. Toyota confessed an infraction from that very race in August. Apparently, they had rebuilt the championship-winning engine of car No. 11 before NASCAR could even take it apart for inspection.

Despite the problem being primarily related to a Toyota vehicle, NASCAR swiftly imposed penalties on Hamlin and his No. 11 team. Hamlin lost ten playoff points, which was offset by five points gained from winning the race, and also forfeited 75 regular season points.

In simpler terms, the penalty for losing points during the regular season moved him down three positions in the overall ranking at the end of the regular season. Consequently, instead of losing only five points in the playoffs, he ended up losing eight.

Moreover, as a result of Hamlin’s penalty, Christopher Bell from Joe Gibbs Racing, William Byron at Hendrick Motorsports, and Ryan Blaney with Team Penske each gained one position in the regular season standings. This advancement also earned them an extra playoff point.

Because playoff points accumulate throughout each stage of the playoffs, this reduction in points remains substantial for Hamlin. He would’ve begun the Round of 8 with a greater total compared to what he actually started with.

In other words, had he not won at Bristol, he’d currently have 4,100 points, not 4,092.

In simpler terms, if any of the other drivers manages to reach the final eight with a points difference less than nine from Hamlin, it would be his victory at Bristol that prevents him from being part of this year’s Championship 4.

At the moment, Bell has a lead of 40 points over Hamlin, Byron sits comfortably 18 points in front, while Blaney trails by 20 points.

If Kyle Larson or Chase Elliott manage to secure a Championship 4 spot by less than eight points over Denny Hamlin, it essentially means that they failed to pick up the additional point when Hamlin dropped positions in the final regular season standings. As of now, Hamlin trails Larson by 11 points and is ahead of Elliott by 25 points.

As a gamer, I’m in the thick of it! The tiebreakers for the championship title are yet undecided, as they depend on who excels most in each round. In the semifinals, Bell and Blaney have managed to bag runner-up positions, while Hamlin is holding strong with a third-place finish.

Tune in to NBC for live broadcast of the Xfinity 500 race at Martinsville Speedway, starting 2:00 p.m. ET this coming Sunday, November 3. To catch every thrilling moment, start a free trial with FuboTV today!

2024-11-03 16:04