This is not how Denny Hamlin wanted the playoffs to start! Everything tracks back to the qualifiers, where Denny Hamlin encountered a powertrain issue, which put him at the back of the grid for the Quaker State 400. This disadvantage itself should have been bad enough for the playoff driver, as this puts him at the risk of getting eliminated.

Although Hamlin is in a safe spot, he is far away from where he would like to be, i.e., at the top of the points. For a driver who has been racing for 20 years without a Cup Series championship, being in the playoffs and watching the win slip away is an arduous task. However, knowing that his engine might malfunction any time during the race puts Hamlin in no better spot than he already was in.

Denny Hamlin’s failing strategy at Atlanta

Although Denny Hamlin started the race in a similar position to Martin Truex Jr. and Ty Gibbs, he did not score any playoff points during the stages. Besides that, knowing that his car had issues during the playoffs made things worse for the driver, as he took a rather cautious approach to the race.

Of course, Denny Hamlin did not want his car to give up during the race, but with a P24 finish, he did not score any points, anyway. At this point, other critics started to question JGR’s strategy to keep Hamlin in the race. One such person was Kevin Harvick, who was not impressed by the No. 11 Toyota’s performance.

Analyzing Hamlin’s strategy at the Atlanta race, Harvick said, “Whatever it was, it’s a complete failure.“ The former NASCAR driver then pointed out how off-brand Hamlin’s driving at Atlanta was by saying, “And when you look at the 11 strategies, it goes totally against everything that they are. Denny Hamlin is great on the superspeedway.”

Hamlin is doubtlessly a great driver, one who knows how to control the lanes. Harvick narrated the events from what happened to the Joe Gibbs Racing driver that night, saying, “They got no stage points, crashed at the end, and now they’re, you know, two points above the cut line. So you cannot race this car scared.”

Bringing attention to what Harvick did not like about the race, the 48-year-old revealed, “To me, that looked like a scared strategy. Everything about it just looked like a totally scared strategy to get up there and mix it up.” Kevin Harvick made it clear that by driving like that, Hamlin cannot magically expect to find positions on the track, but that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Hamlin’s wreck at Atlanta

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There were only 14 laps left for the race, and Denny Hamlin found himself in some more trouble. Ross Chastain moved up the track and clipped the rear of the No. 11 car, which threw the car into a spinning frenzy. What makes this much worse is the fact that the crash happened on the front stretch, but luckily none of the cars involved had to retire because of the incident.

While Denny Hamlin compared the race, he finished 24th, and with 0 stage points, he is almost in the danger zone of getting eliminated from the playoffs. About the strategy that Hamlin implied during the race, he mentioned on his podcast that it was his call itself and with that, he will have to live with the result that he achieved.

There is much more on Hamlin’s mind as he is yet to figure out the charter deal for his team 23XI Racing, which he co-owns with NBA Legend Michael Jordan. Having so much pressure during the playoffs is not ideal, and it looks like Denny Hamlin has more on his plate than he can eat.

Considering everything going on with Denny Hamlin, do you think he still stands a chance to win the Cup Series Championship? Share your thoughts in the comments below.