“Something just felt different this year for me. I felt like it was time to slow down and do something else.” While Martin Truex Jr. felt that unique sting to finally call it a career, his teammate had a different sting of his own. Denny Hamlin and Truex are both 43 years old, the latter being roughly 4 and a half months older. Their NASCAR Cup Series debut also happened in 2006, as both drivers rode stock car racing’s premier series on parallel lines.

Both Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. have battled hard throughout their careers, including this season. For instance, the Hamlin enraged his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate after stealing a dominant run in Richmond. Yet even as the 34-time Cup race winner is hanging up his firesuit, Hamlin is feeling that lump in his throat.

Denny Hamlin confesses to heartburn for teammate

Martin Truex Jr. has flirted with the idea of retirement for two years. After dropping earth-shattering hints to Joe Gibbs so many times, the team owner thought this time would also be a fluke. Yet the 2017 Cup Series champ declared his final intentions after the Gateway race in June. He is the latest champion to join a list of recent retirees. That changing guard included contemporaries in Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, and Jeff Gordon. Yet Truex has fond frenemy memories with Denny Hamlin. When the latter won Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors back in 2006, he bested a group that included Truex, Clint Bowyer, JJ Yeley, and David Stremme.

Next season, Denny Hamlin will be the last of that rookie class still competing full-time in the Cup Series. So the JGR driver is feeling that little tug of emotions. In an ‘Actions Detrimental’ video, Hamlin tipped his hat to his outgoing teammate: “Truex…just a constant professional as a teammate. Certainly somebody that I admire off the race track as well as how independent he is…We’ll definitely miss Martin and everything he brings to Joe Gibbs Racing and…wish him the best.” Amidst this heartfelt admiration, Hamlin could not gulp down that lump in his throat further.

Following the Phoenix race last weekend, Martin Truex Jr. received a standing ovation from his competitors. Denny Hamlin confessed that although he was not at the center of it, the event had him fighting back tears. “I was getting emotional for him. Maybe it’s just my old age…But like, they play the video and I start, ‘Hold it back, I’m alright, I’m okay.’ It’s not even about me. But I’m just…you know how big that moment is for others. I realized I did the same thing during the Harvick video. Like I started holding it back a little bit…because you know it’s like a big moment for them and their family.” 

Meanwhile, MTJ was chill: “But Martin’s casual. While everyone’s standing up, he’s just sitting in a seat…I don’t know, that is Martin. I mean, he’s always been that way.”

If the former No. 19 driver decides to come back for 2025, then Denny Hamlin has a spot.

Hamlin covering for his buddy

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Martin Truex Jr. was a force to reckon with even during his last full-time season. His consistent finishes of 11 top-tens got him through at least the first stage of the playoffs. But the outgoing JGR racer has one thing missing: a race win to cap off his career. Truex’s 2017 season was by far the best. He scored eight wins, 19 top-fives, and a ridiculous 9.42 average finish en route to winning the championship. Yet a Daytona 500 victory is yet to enter his resume. Truex came agonizingly close a few times—in 2017, he led the race before getting freight-trained on the back straightaway with two laps left. Then in 2016, he lost to Denny Hamlin in a photo finish by just 0.011 seconds.

At his moment of departure, Hamlin is prepared to fix another opportunity for Truex to finally win it. “I told him that I will have his Daytona 500 car ready immediately,” said Hamlin, co-owner of Toyota affiliate team 23XI Racing. “Tell me the word. 100%. I would 100% do that. … Any time that Martin gets bored and wants to run Cup, we would have a seat for him for sure.” 

Other options for Truex to go Cup racing include his home track of Dover. It is arguably his best racetrack, where he owns four victories. He has also led over 1,000 laps at the track and has an average finish of 11.2. Another option would be to tap into JGR’s Xfinity cars along with his brother Ryan.

Whatever Martin Truex Jr. decides to do in 2025, Denny Hamlin would help him out. It is truly beautiful to see two frenemies on the racetrack shed tears for each other upon departure!