Denny Hamlin

#11 FedEx Toyota

Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:

Race: Bojangles’ Southern 500

Date/Time: September 1/6:00 p.m. ET

Distance: 367 laps/501.3 miles

Track Length: 1.36 miles

Track Shape: Egged-shaped oval

2018 Winner: Brad Keselowski

Express Notes:

Bristol (Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race) Recap: Denny Hamlin stormed from two laps down to win the Aug. 17 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, passing Matt DiBenedetto with 11 laps remaining to capture his fourth victory of the season. Hamlin lined up ninth for the final restart with 113 laps to go, and methodically picked off positions toward the front. He made it into the top five with less than 75 to go, and then up to second with 40 laps remaining. He worked the high line to catch DiBenedetto and then dove to the bottom to complete the pass. The race was not without incident for the #11 FedEx Team. An early wreck happened right in front of Hamlin while leading, and he was collected in it to sustain right-side damage. Repairs dropped him outside the top 10 for Stage 1 (11th), where he was seemingly mired in traffic. Then in Stage 2, Hamlin felt a loose wheel vibration and made an unscheduled stop on Lap 189, putting him two laps down to the field when the caution flew shortly thereafter. The wave-around got one lap back, and then Hamlin got the free pass with six laps to go in Stage 2 after a host of cautions late in that segment. Hamlin restarted the final segment just inside the top-20 before making his charge to the front. The finish vaulted Hamlin to third in the NASCAR point standings following Bristol, 77 points behind leader Kyle Busch with two races remaining in the regular season.

Darlington “NASCAR Throwback” Preview: The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads next to “The Lady in Black” for 367 laps of action at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, Sept. 1. With only two regular season races left, Hamlin and team will look to continue their fine form as playoff racing is right around the corner. Additionally, the FedEx #11 will be participating in the NASCAR “throwback” tradition by honoring Darrell Waltrip. Chosen by Denny Hamlin and the Joe Gibbs Racing team, the special design replicates the scheme from Waltrip’s final race win at Darlington in 1992 and pays homage to his legendary racing and broadcasting career in the sport of NASCAR.

Hamlin Darlington Statistics:

Track: Darlington Raceway

Races: 13

Wins: 2 (2010, 2017)

Poles: 1 (2018)

Top-5: 7

Top-10: 11

Laps Led: 562

Avg. Start: 8.8

Avg. Finish 6.2

Hamlin Conversation:

Can you tell us more about your special throwback paint scheme that you are driving at Darlington?

“I’m thrilled to be honoring Darrell Waltrip this year for my throwback paint scheme, paying respect to his legendary career. I helped design two paint schemes that were voted on by JGR employees, and they chose the one that replicates the Western Auto scheme that ‘DW’ drove for his final win at Darlington in 1992.”

Your team is really connecting on all cylinders at the moment. How important is that as you head into the playoffs in just three short weeks?

“This FedEx team is on such a roll right now. We show up fast to the racetrack each and every weekend, and I’m proud of what our entire team has been able to accomplish these past few weeks. We are happy with what we have been doing, but know there is a lot of work ahead of us, especially with the playoffs just around the corner.”

2019 FedEx Racing Team Results
DATE	EVENT	LOCATION	START	FINISH	LAPS	STATUS	LED	PTS	TREND
Feb. 17	Daytona 500	Daytona	10	1	207/207	Running	30	1st	▬
Feb. 24	Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500	Atlanta	4	11	325/325	Running	0	1st	▬
March 3	Pennzoil 400	Vegas	2	10	267/267	Running	0	3rd	▼
March 10	TicketGuardian 500	Phoenix	3	5	312/312	Running	7	4th	▼
March  17	Auto Club 400	Fontana	6	7	200/200	Running	8	4th	▬
March 24	STP 500	Martinsville	3	5	500/500	Running	0	2nd	▲
March 31	O’Reilly Auto Parts 500	Texas	6	1	334/334	Running	45	2nd	▬
April 7	Food City 500	Bristol	5	5	500/500	Running	7	2nd	▬
April 14	Toyota Owners 400	Richmond	30	5	400/400	Running	0	3rd	▼
April 28	GEICO 500	Talladega	23	36	80/188	DNF	0	3rd	▬
May 6	Gander RV 400	Dover	8	21	397/400	Running	0	4th	▼
May 12	Digital Ally 400	Kansas	11	16	270/271	Running	0	6th	▼
May 26	Coca-Cola 600	Charlotte	20	17	400/400	Running	21	7th	▼
June 2	Pocono 400	Pocono	6	6	160/160	Running	1	6th	▲
June 10	FireKeepers Casino 400	Michigan	4	11	203/203	Running	5	7th	▼
June 23	Toyota / Save Mart 350	Sonoma	6	5	90/90	Running	4	6th	▲
June 30	Camping World 400	Chicagoland	9	15	267/267	Running	5	6th	▬
July 7	Coke Zero Sugar 400	Daytona	4	26	125/127	Running	5	6th	▬
July 13	Quaker State 400	Kentucky	18	5	269/269	Running	5	5th	▲
July 21	Foxwoods Resort Casino 301	New Hampshire	23	2	301/301	Running	113	4th	▲
July 28	Gander RV 400	Pocono	9	1	163/163	Running	32	4th	▬
August 4	GoBowling at The Glen	Watkins Glen	6	3	90/90	Running	0	4th	▬
August 11	Consumers Energy 400	Michigan	14	2	200/200	Running	6	4th	▬
August 17	Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race	Bristol	1	1	500/500	Running	79	3rd	▲
Averages/Totals			9.8	9.8	98%		373