‘Unfortunate Competitors’ Michael Jordan & Co Become Denny Hamlin’s Championship Roadblock at Martinsville

Going into the round of 8, Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin was considered one of the favorites to win the title. The 42-year-old driver has amassed three wins so far this season and has been in tremendous form throughout. But in NASCAR, fortunes can change just like that and Hamlin has been a victim. With one race left in the round of 8, he is 17 points behind the cutline. He will have to beat a driver from a team he and Michael Jordan put a lot of effort into building.

Ever since he finished P3 at the Talladega Superspeedway, Denny Hamlin has been suffering one disappointment after another. He suffered a DNF at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in the last race of the round of 12. The JGR star finished P10 in the first round of 8 race in Las Vegas but suffered another DNF last weekend at the Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan stand on opposing sides

With Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson winning one race each in the round of 8, there are two open spots left for the final 4. William Byron is 30 points above the cutline. Given his form and points cushion, the HMS man shouldn’t have a problem locking in his place in Phoenix. Ryan Blaney, who occupies fourth place on the table is only 10 points ahead of the cutline.

The Team Penske star is who Denny Hamlin will target if he is looking to qualify on points. The problem is that he isn’t the only one. Martin Truex Jr., Tyler Reddick, and Chris Buescher are all in the picture. Truex is Hamlin’s JGR teammate and Reddick is the Michael Jordan prodigy Hamlin will have to beat.

Tyler Reddick is closest to Ryan Blaney with only 10 points behind the cutline. Truex and Hamlin have the same number of points. Chris Buescher wouldn’t even be worrying about points as he is 43 below. The only thing on the RFK Racing man’s mind will be a win.

Denny Hamlin, on the other hand, will have to outscore Michael Jordan’s star. Thankfully, he is starting the race in P4 while Reddick is down in P19. The 42-year-old was blunt in his assessment ahead of the race. For Sunday, 23XI Racing is his competitor and he will treat them like so.

“The way I see it, I’ve got 2 shots to get into the final 4. I certainly would rather do it on the driver’s side, because there are going to be far less opportunities to do that, than what it would be on the owner’s side, but also really happy that, that team has worked itself into a position that if it performs well, it could get in as well. But this weekend, unfortunately, they are competitors and I will treat them as such,” the 23XI Racing co-owner said.

Tyler Reddick is not the one Denny Hamlin needs to be worried about. The man who is the immediate threat is his teammate who is on pole position, Martin Truex Jr. If the regular season champion finds his form back in Martinsville, Hamlin can kiss the Cup Series goodbye.

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With one driver already in the playoffs, Joe Gibbs will be hoping for at least a second addition in the final 4. Seems like it will be a fight between Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. Thankfully for the former, the stats are in his favor.

Since 2005, Denny Hamlin has started in 35 Cup races at the Martinsville Speedway and has an average finish of 10.3. He has won five and finished in the top-5 18 times. Clearly, it is one of the 42-year-old’s stronger tracks. He also has three top-5 finishes in the last five races at the venue.

Martin Truex Jr., on the other hand, has taken part in 35 Cup races at the track since late 2004. The driver of the #19 has won thrice and has 10 top-5 finishes. His average finish at the track is 16.0. Like Hamlin, Truex also has three top-five finishes in the last 5 races there, including a win in 2021.

On Sunday, Truex will have the advantage of starting ahead of the rest of the pack. Hamlin will have to find a way to get to the front from P4. The fight between the two JGR stars seems inevitable, but who is going to come out on top? Let us know your thoughts. 

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