April 10, 2024. Martinsville Speedway. Just three weeks shy of the 40th anniversary of Hendrick Motorsports’ team-saving first win. The team’s four drivers sported ruby-red paint schemes and firesuits. The entire facility was filled with Hendrick memorabilia, and every one of its record-28 wins in Martinsville was displayed in the Turn 4 pedestrian tunnel. That day, William Byron made it 29 wins, and in incredible fashion.

The No. 24 driver led Kyle Larson – whose car featured Linda Hendrick’s name on the passenger side – and Chase Elliott across the line in an unprecedented 1-2-3 finish. “I can’t believe it,” exclaimed Jeff Gordon after the race because the feat was nothing less than unbelievable. After all, that was the first time any team had registered a podium sweep in Martinsville. Since we’re talking about seemingly unbelievable achievements, Linda Hendrick wants another one for HMS this season.

In a Hendrick Motorsports press conference – presumably at the team’s playoff kickoff luncheon – Linda addressed the team’s four drivers: “I will tell you this. Rick and I really, really want this championship on our 40th anniversary year.” Who’ll be the one to get the Hendricks what they want? Well, statistically, all four of them can.

That historic Martinsville win secured William Byron a place in the playoffs. Chase Elliott snapped his 42-race winless streak in Texas to guarantee his place in the postseason. Despite missing the Coca-Cola 600 while attempting The Double, a waiver (and his four wins) will ensure Kyle Larson is in the Round of 16. As for Alex Bowman, despite labeling himself the team’s “village idiot,” he broke an 80-race winless drought in Chicago to book his ticket to Atlanta. So, although HMS just needs one of them to see the postseason through to the end, Rick Hendrick’s wife has demanded more.

And this is where it got interesting. November 10. The Championship 4 at the Phoenix Raceway. The final showdown. When Jeff Gordon prompted, “And you want all four of them to be at Phoenix, going for that championship,” Linda looked at the four drivers and said, “1 2 3 4. You pick out which spot you want to be in.” Wouldn’t this be the best way to cap off the celebrations for the 40th anniversary of NASCAR’s winningest team?

Well, considering Alex Bowman led a 1-2-3-4 across the line in Dover back in 2021, and HMS became one of the only teams to achieve this feat, we can’t put it past Rick Hendrick’s men to deliver on this demand. But has something like this ever happened before? In recent history, the closest any team has come to having four cars in the Championship 4 was in 2019. Joe Gibbs Racing featured Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr, and eventual champion Kyle Bush against SHR’s Kevin Harvick.

Besides the fact that four cars from the same team making the Championship 4 is unheard of, there’s also the aspect of HMS’ rivals. Seeing how well other teams have been performing so far, it’s unlikely that Rick Hedrick’s team will be the only one competing for the title in Phoenix.

You have the likes of Tyler Reddick and Denny Hamlin, who have been regular contenders for race wins throughout the season. And then you have shock victors like Harrison Burton, who has qualified for the postseason despite being 34th in the standings.

That said, whatever happens in the playoffs – no matter what Linda Hendrick demanded – there’s one thing that will prevail in the Hendrick Motorsports stable. There’s one thing that will only grow…

More than wins, it’s about “culture” for Rick Hendrick

On Tuesday, every Hendrick Motorsports employee and stakeholder headed to Concord, North Carolina, to celebrate two things: a luncheon celebrating 9 employees who celebrated 20 years with the organization and the playoff kickoff luncheon. Acknowledging the camaraderie and the togetherness in his setup, Rick Hendrick said,

“The victories are one thing, but when people come through here, it’s not really the victories that capture them. It’s the culture… Everybody’s smiling, and I appreciate that more than you’ll ever know.” Linda mentioned the prospect of a 1-2-3-4 in the championship earlier. As impossible as that may have sounded to many, she seemed confident it could happen. Why?

Because of the “togetherness” in HMS. Addressing the gathering, she said, “That’s why we’re here; that’s why we’re pulling strong; that’s why we’re going to keep pulling strong. That’s why we’re going to keep winning.” If one of the four Hendrick Motorsports drivers does win the championship, the team will tie up a 30-season span since Gordon won the first in 1995. Wouldn’t that be the cherry on top of the 40th-anniversary celebrations for Rick Hendrick & Co.?