Fresh Off Bristol Victory, Denny Hamlin Admits to Lagging Behind in COTA

The upcoming EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix will Kick-off NASCAR’s first road-course race of the 2024 season. But unlike the previous oval races, this one has a different 3.41-mile layout that will test drivers’ skills. Fans are looking forward to seeing how Denny Hamlin handles the turns at the following race, after his massive fourth Bristol Motor Speedway Cup race victory. While Denny Hamlin has excelled on short tracks, transitioning to a technical and high-speed circuit like Circuit of the Americas with its high-speed straights and slow tight corners presents a new challenge for him, which he recently opened up about. The driver also revealed how he’s not as “familiar” with the COTA track.

Denny Hamlin has some work to do ahead of COTA

Denny Hamlin entered Bristol Motor Speedway with hopes of securing a victory, following his playoff win there in 2023. Despite tough conditions and extreme tire wear, Hamlin’s No. 11 car offered outlasting performance in the competition by stealing the win from his teammate Martin Truex Jr in a thrilling finish. Though he is delighted with his first 2024 NASCAR season victory after the season-opening Clash, Hamlin couldn’t help but think about the formidable obstacle that awaits him at COTA.

With the Texas road course competition heating up, drivers have been offering their pre-race predictions, including Hamlin. The 43-year-old, known for his transparency, admitted to having shortcomings, particularly with speed management.

According to KXAN News, Hamlin revealed, “It’s a lot different for sure. With the extended practice next week, I definitely feel a little better about getting up to speed before qualifying goes. I’ll put the same to maybe a little more time on it simply because I’m not as familiar with how to make really good speed on that track quite yet.”

Denny Hamlin will have to face a strategic challenge at the Austin circuit as unlike tracks that reward tire management and strategic pit stops, COTA demands raw speed. Even though he acknowledged needing to work on his speed, the JGR racer remained optimistic, saying, “It’s just gonna take a little little time, and certainly a lot different mindset from my standpoint.”

Now, coming back to the Bristol race that saw absolute mayhem in terms of tire management, the old-school racer seemed to spoiled everyone’s fun with strategic racing that saw him emerge victorious. However, despite his team managing to overcome the Goodyear debacle, he asked NASCAR’s official tire supplier to look into the unforeseen tire degradation on Bristol’s concrete track.

Denny Hamlin offers constructive feedback regarding Bristol’s tire damage

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Denny Hamlin’s 52nd Cup Series victory seemed to have been overshadowed by the uninvited tire wear seen in the Bristol spring race. Even though no one knows what caused the tire problems, the 23XLteam co-owner told Goodyear not to panic and to find its root, suggesting a review of their manufacturing process.

He said, “Whatever happened in the mixture department maybe at Goodyear, that’s something certainly that could be used, maybe not to that extent, but it could be used. I think they have to figure out what in their process changed from this batch of tires versus last, just cut it back a little bit.”

Hopefully, they can quickly identify the root of the problem and make sure this kind of unexpected tire failure will never occur again, especially at the upcoming COTA’s flat track.

Read More: ‘Hurt’ Martin Truex Jr Details the Strategic Fumble That Handed Denny Hamlin the Bristol Crown