?Don?t Have to Win?: Dale Earnhardt Jr Lays Out Perfect Escape for Denny Hamlin & Martin Truex Jr to Keep Championship Hopes Alive

The high-speed drama of NASCAR’s playoff season took an unexpected twist at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. It has left Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr facing an uphill battle to secure their spot in the Championship 4 at Phoenix. But NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr has come up with a blueprint for redemption, showing the way for these Joe Gibbs Racing drivers to stay in the title hunt.

Before Homestead Miami, both Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr were in a good position to secure their place in the season finale at Phoenix. However, a disastrous race in Miami threw a wrench into their plans. Both drivers failed to finish the race. They now sit 17 points behind the cutline, with the threat of elimination looming as their teammate, Christopher Bell, locked in his place in the season finale.

Dale Earnhardt Jr lays out the plan for Denny Hamlin and Truex Jr at Martinsville Speedway

In what has been a frustrating playoff for Truex Jr, things took a turn for the worse in Miami. Within moments of Denny Hamlin hitting the wall and ending his race at lap 236. Truex’s car was smoking, marking the end of his day as well. The misfortune sent both Hamlin and Truex to the next week’s elimination race at Martinsville, 17 points from the cutline and with an uphill battle to join teammate Christopher Bell in the championship race.

With Bell joining Kyle Larson in the championship race, only two spots remain. And William Byron, the driver with the highest number of wins in the series this season, is currently 30 points ahead of the first driver outside a playoff spot. Ryan Blaney is sitting right on the cutline 20 points behind. Unless Byron faces major issues at Martinsville, he is well on his way to securing the third spot in the championship, leaving Blaney, Hamlin, Truex, Reddick, and Buescher to battle for the final coveted spot.

Dale Earnhardt Jr laid out a strategy for the Joe Gibbs Racing drivers in a recent episode of his podcast. “…Now we go to Martinsville with Martin Truex Jr and Denny Hamlin, two guys that are great at Martinsville at -17. Ryan Blaney comes into Homestead at -17, and then he leaves at +10. So that’s the blueprint for Truex and Hamlin. They’re not in a must-win situation, right? They just need to go to Martinsville, get stage points finishing in the top 3. And finish in the top 3 in the race. They don’t have to win; they’ve got to be damn near perfect, though.“

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The drama didn’t end at the race itself. It seems like payback might have come around in a full circle for Denny Hamlin.

Ryan Blaney calls out Hamlin as a ‘hack’ for using him up at the track

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Back in 2021, at Martinsville’s fall race, Denny Hamlin was turned by Alex Bowman in the closing laps of the race. Leading to Hamlin publicly terming Bowman a ‘hack’. But this time, the tables turned as it was Hamlin who found himself on the receiving end of such comments, with Ryan Blaney making his feelings quite clear.

Blaney and Hamlin found themselves in a tight spot on the track in Miami. Even though Hamlin’s race took a hit later on due to a different incident. It didn’t stop Ryan Blaney from expressing his dissatisfaction with the veteran driver. “He tried to slide me two or three times and failed miserably,” said Blaney. “And then just decided to use me up. If you?re going to slide somebody, slide somebody and commit. Don?t halfway do it and use me up. What did he say? Hack. I think he was that today.“

The clash between Hamlin and Blaney on the track may have added another layer of intensity to an already dramatic playoff race. It remains to be seen if these on-track tensions will carry over to Martinsville and further spice up the competition.

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The championship hopes of Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr hang in the balance. The unexpected setback in Miami has left them on the brink of elimination. However, with the wisdom of Dale Earnhardt Jr, there is still a glimmer of hope.