Twenty points. That’s all Denny Hamlin asked for in Atlanta. Instead, he finished outside the top 20, did not lead a single lap, and managed only 13 points after qualifying issues had the #11 Toyota Camry XSE starting dead last this Sunday. But it could’ve been much worse if not for one man.

As Joey Logano and Daniel Suarez raced to the finish, The Big One erupted in their wake, ensnaring nearly a dozen drivers behind them. First, Ross Chastain went into the wall. Then, Bubba Wallace lost control of his #23 car. Once the dust settled, replays revealed that even playoff contenders like Harrison Burton and Wallace’s team owner, Denny Hamlin, had been unlucky in the mayhem. However, amid the chaos, Hamlin found himself an unlikely ally in the mindful presence of the most notorious part-timer in the Cup Series today—BJ McLeod.

Denny Hamlin’s race was almost over—until BJ McLeod stepped in

For those unaware, BJ McLeod made waves in the 2024 silly season when his team, Live Fast Motorsports, sold their only charter to Spire Motorsports for $40M. Since then, McLeod has only made part-time appearances, fighting for little extra incentive, mostly on superspeedways. He hasn’t done all that bad in his non-points ride, with a best-ever finish of P19 coming a couple of weeks ago in Daytona. Interestingly, for someone who’s often labeled a backmarker, McLeod led 33 laps and secured himself a top-25 finish in Atlanta.

Some might argue that finishing P25 is quite respectable, given the challenges of competing on a temporary ‘field-filling’ schedule. At least in this instance, he ended his race behind Denny Hamlin, a certified playoff contender. But from what Hamlin discussed on the latest episode of Actions Detrimental, he sounded incredibly indebted to BJ McLeod, another owner/driver who shares an incredible level of mutual understanding. It was on display when the #11 car and the #78 got caught up in that last-lap wreck. In Denny’s words, “BJ gave me a solid lift off the gas…”

“This is where I talked about many years ago that there is a deposit and withdrawal that you have with your competitors,” he explained. “And I definitely ended up getting a withdrawal from BJ because he actually pulled me aside after practice… [McLeod] said, ‘Hey man, I haven’t talked to you a whole lot but then you know I just wanna thank you for what you do for me on these superspeedways, you know, you pushed me to the lead at Talladega a few years back.’ I think it was last year. And he was like, ‘That’s a big, big deal for me and my team.’”

“Then there was one time, where he was kinda getting strung off the back of the pack. Instead of passing him like we all would, and then he just falls off and goes laps down, I just got behind him, pushed him back up to the back of the pack. And he’s like, ‘You know, I just wanna say thank you, and I appreciate that. If there’s anything I can ever do for you, just let me know.’” – as per Denny Hamlin. But he didn’t even have to ask McLeod for help to make it past the finish line in Atlanta. Concurrent with Hamlin’s statements, McLeod noticed his friend stranded moments away from a top-25 position after the #11 ran at the back all day, lacking speed.

In the end, Hamlin only managed 13 points for his efforts. However, a driver ineligible to race for points understood the predicament of the #11 team and helped them from the outside. But as the perennial championship bridesmaid currently sits, only two points separated from the cutline, things could’ve looked much worse if it wasn’t for BJ McLeod’s camaraderie.

Playoff hopes rest on performance, not a helping hand

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From Kyle Larson to Chase Briscoe, to Martin Truex Jr, plenty of playoff contenders got caught up in wrecks throughout the 266 laps of the Quaker State 400 at Atlanta. When Hamlin crashed on the last lap, so did Harrison Burton, who is at risk of not making it past the Round of 12 after failing to finish his race, moments away from the line. That could’ve been Hamlin’s fortune, and it sure looked like it right then. As Hamlin’s co-host, Jared Allen, noted, “Your car getting to the finish line was looking like a drunk walking out of the bar… It was a struggle…”

“But then, because I guess BJ slowed down, I thought Denny just stepped on the gas later or something… It looked like, you just like sped up and passed him…,” he shared his initial observations with his Dirty Mo Media Network podcast partner. Hamlin clarified it wasn’t like that, and If he went any faster, his car would’ve spun out. Hence, with a deeper perspective, Allen summed it up in just two short sentences, when he said, “So deposits to the BJ McLeod bank years, and years, and years ago pay off here. Instead of a 25th-place finish, you finished 24th…” 

Indeed, the #11 car finished 24th, and Hamlin agreed that every point mattered. But next week at Watkins Glen, he faces an entirely distinct challenge. Thanks to his dismal outing in Atlanta, Denny Hamlin cannot afford to make any mistakes in the next two races. BJ McLeod won’t be running alongside the field at WGI. That would mean the #11 car has one less ally to help him next Sunday.

Regardless, the driver took it to a runner-up finish last year. And mathematically, he needs 47 points or more to make it to the Round of 12. Can he do one spot better at The Glen this year to punch his championship ticket beside Joey Logano? Only time will tell.