Given how Denny Hamlin’s past two years of Round of 8 races have gone, it is only safe for the 11 team to have a contingency plan in place. The #11 team has their backs against the wall, and with an 18-point deficit, they are looking to bounce back at the Martinsville Speedway. Out of all tracks, a short oval is something Hamlin can always rely on.

However, he hasn’t won a race at the half-mile track since 2015, and while the fall races in the Next Gen era have been good, it won’t cut it. Especially when the likes of Chase Elliot, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Larson are all fighting for the same prize. This is why Chris Gabehart has already identified a backup plan that would see Hamlin through to the Championship 4 race.

Track position will be key for Hamlin at Martinsville

One of the big issues that the short-track ovals are going through is the lack of passing opportunities. This in turn leads to an execution battle among the drivers, and that is only possible if you have a commanding position on the racetrack.

Although NASCAR is bringing the softest-ever tires that are expected to fall off quickly, Gabehart isn’t counting his lucky stars just yet. Remember, it was Denny Hamlin who won the wild tire wear race at Bristol in the spring. So if the Goodyear tires deliver on what they promise, they are believed to be among the clear favorites.

But again, there’s a lot that can change on the actual race weekend. And this is why Gabehart doesn’t want to take any chances. And his backup plan is to qualify well and get a good enough track position. “So that will be a priority, but think of going into qualifying; you gotta qualify well. If you can put up a big number and some of your opponents happen to struggle, then that’s the tone, right? Okay, we can go out there and knock one of these 50-point days down if not win it.” Gabehart said ahead of the race.

The idea here is that he wants to put pressure on the rival camps, who are in a similar scenario. Fall races in Martinsville could turn ugly pretty quick, and the best way to avoid the chaos and drama is the run up front. “The difficulty is the 24, the 5, and the 9, all teams are racing. They were really strong there in the spring, and they’ll be strong again, but the fall playoff race at Martinsville, the cut-off race has a different feel to it; that pressure gets to a lot of these teams,” he added.

But, make no mistake, the primary objective for Denny Hamlin and the #11 team is to get a victory.

Hamlin is eager to win at Martinsville Speedway

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Points racing isn’t exactly the best strategy for the playoff drivers. Hamlin of all the drivers understands the stress and pressure it brings. While 50-plus points would be enough to see him through this Sunday, will that breathe confidence in him before the Phoenix race? A win not only seals his spot in the final 4, but it will boost the morale of the entire #11 team. They’ve been through some tough times lately, and Hamlin needs to convert his solid performances on the track into a victory.

“We dominate the fall races. We led a bazillion laps. It’s just that we’ve already had something keep us from winning there. Me and Chris, we just want to win at Martinsville. Like f**k all the final four and all, that’s great, but like we just want to win there, that’s such a great racetrack. A track that I take a lot of pride in, man want to win it bad.” He said this on the Actions Detrimental podcast.

In 2022, Hamlin was the victim of the hail-melon at Martinsville. In 2023, a mechanical failure at Homestead derailed his title hopes. Surely, the third time has to be the charm for the driver and his team.