Joe Gibbs Racing chief ‘proud’ of Denny Hamlin after hitting 23XI car

Denny Hamlin is a hero once again at Joe Gibbs Racing despite failing to hang on for NASCAR Cup Series win number 60 at Kansas on Sunday.

The 44-year-old superstar was unable to take the checkered flag first as his steering issues allowed Chase Elliott to surprise everybody in a dramatic finish to the Hollywood Casino 400.

But while Hamlin was relegated to second in the very last seconds, he did also ensure that his ‘other team’ would not come out on top.

Hamlin had been racing 23XI Racing star Bubba Wallace side by side as they battled for the win on the very last lap. Would Denny lose out to the team he co-owns with Michael Jordan?

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Hamlin praised for fighting Wallace hard

The answer would be negative as Denny's attentions pushed Bubba into the wall, with Wallace eventually coming home in fifth before flipping the middle finger at Hamlin.

The incident came just seven days after Hamlin had been at the center of another massive flashpoint, when he wrecked JGR teammate Ty Gibbs at New Hampshire.

Now all of that in-team beef appears to be forgotten, with Denny’s loyalties - accidentally or not - appearing very clear as he battled Wallace in Kansas. Imagine the fallout if he hadn’t raced quite as hard, and Wallace had beaten him for the win?

Jeff Gluck of The Athletic captured the feeling at JGR as he wrote: “JGR competition director Chris Gabehart told me after the race that Hamlin has to race as ‘Denny the driver, Denny the person who has built his legacy at Joe Gibbs Racing’ and not as a team owner for 23XI.”

Gabehart went on: “Man, I just couldn’t be more proud of him. I hate it for how (Wallace) ended up, but Denny has got to get after it to try and win the race, and that’s what he did.”

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Briscoe playoff hopes boosted by Wallace misery

There was another reason for the brass at Joe Gibbs Racing to be very pleased by how things played out in the closing stages at Kansas - the playoff hopes of Chase Briscoe and the No. 19 Toyota.

A win for Wallace would have locked him into the Round of 8, and left Briscoe in danger of a playoff exit before the championship battle really hots up.

Briscoe admitted to Gluck: “The whole last lap, once I felt like I was not going to win, I’m just like, ‘Anybody but the 23’.

“Nothing against Bubba, but it just changes my situation so much. I’ve never been in a scenario like that where you know one guy winning changes your situation that drastically.”

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