“It was in my best interest to try to stay high,” a passionate Xfinity racer defended himself in Atlanta. Two weeks ago, the Coke Zero Sugar 400 race took us by surprise. Not only did Ford driver Harrison Burton upturn the usual notions, but also was supported by a Chevrolet rival. Parker Retzlaff gave Burton the much-needed push for the win, although fellow Chevy driver Kyle Busch was also nearby.

A similar narrative played out on the past Sunday’s Xfinity race. Instead of helping his Toyota compatriot and Joe Gibbs’ stud, a driver prioritized his own winning chances. Although things did not work out, Denny Hamlin put his weight behind in support.

Denny Hamlin snuffs out OEM betrayal

NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series heralds a young and versatile racer at present. Corey Heim currently ranks 3rd in points with 5 wins and he also made starts in NASCAR’s other levels. For instance, Heim drove the No. 50 Toyota at Nashville for 23XI Racing, earning a soft corner in Denny Hamlin’s heart. So when Heim wrestled out fellow Toyota driver Chandler Smith in an attempt to win the Focused Health 250 race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Hamlin wholeheartedly supported him. “If I could sum it up, I think he was making the best move he could for himself,” Hamlin said.

Toward the end of the race, Corey Heim had two options – to help Smith or pave his own path. In an episode of ‘Actions Detrimental,’ Denny Hamlin reasoned that Joe Gibbs Racing driver Smith’s position was jittery to begin with. “Chandler kind of got underneath Austin in a very weird place in the middle of 3 and 4. At that time it’s like, there’s not gonna be enough momentum that he can pass him.” So Heim’s self-centered move was justifiable, as Hamlin continued: “I think it’s very rare, if not none, that a 3rd-place guy, say there’s no affiliation, would choose the bottom car unless it was a direct teammate. Corey then went to the high side, pushed Austin, passed Chandler.”

Although Austin Hill squeezed Heim to the wall and dropped him to 5th, Denny Hamlin is undeterred. He continued that Heim owes Joe Gibbs or Toyota nothing. “I think that Corey doesn’t have any alliance or allegiance to JGR, and JGR doesn’t have any allegiance to Corey. So he’s gonna do to what he thinks he can do to win the race. I thought he made the best move to do that.” Corey Heim himself justified his move, especially because of his team affiliation.

The team ideals were in play

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Well, Denny Hamlin is right – although Corey Heim is a Toyota driver, he is not in Joe Gibbs’ fold like Chandler Smith. Instead, the No. 11 Toyota racer is dedicated to his current team, Sam Hunt Racing. Competing in the Xfinity Series since 2019, the team has amassed 26 top-10 finishes with 11 top-fives. However, the glimmer of a trophy still evades the team’s gaze. Heim is striving to change exactly that narrative and came within a hair’s breadth of doing so in Atlanta.

That was the purpose that motivated Heim to execute the move on Sunday. “Any kind of laps at any kind of track and car I can get into is pretty crucial for my development. That’s what I am here to do, to help Sam Hunt Racing find speed and I think we had a win today internally but certainly wanted the big one, just wasn’t meant to be.” Team owner Sam Hunt is also delighted with the boost: “I think we’ve made a ton of improvements on our (superspeedway) cars, hybrid package cars…We obviously love Corey and want to see him racing on Sundays.”

Evidently, Corey Heim’s move was not out of spite for Toyota, but out of an intense commitment to his team. And under Denny Hamlin’s wing, he would definitely flourish in 2025.