Race No. 26, the final race of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series “regular season,” is an anticipated event for every single driver in the series.
But it’s something else entirely for Denny Hamlin.
“Anticipation” fails to capture Hamlin’s emotions come race time at Richmond International Raceway.
Hamlin grew up in the .75-mile track’s shadows, and as such, pines for a victory at his very local short track. Literally, a NASCAR Sprint Cup win at Richmond is at the top of his wish list.
He has come close a number of times, but has yet to break through to Victory Lane.
Oddly, his best Richmond performance ended his worst Richmond finish.
In last season’s May Richmond race, Hamlin had the dominant car – by far. He led an astounding 381 of 400 laps. But a late-race tire problem killed his day, ended the dream and resulted in a 24th-place finish. Still, he finished up that race with a number of race-best statistics, including a Driver Rating of 129.1. Auto Racing Daily
CAR DRIVER MAKE SPONSOR 0 David Reutimann Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Tracker 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 5 Mark Martin Chevrolet Kellogg's / Carquest 6 David Ragan Ford UPS 7 Robby Gordon Toyota Jim Beam 7 Casey Mears Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Budweiser 9 Brad Keselowski Chevrolet Miccosukee Resort & Gaming 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota FedEx Express 12 David Stremme Dodge Penske Racing 14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet Office Depot / Old Spice 16 Greg Biffle Ford 3M 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Dewalt 18 Kyle Busch Toyota M&M's 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge Insignia 20 Joey Logano* Toyota The Home Depot 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet National Guard Wounded Warrior / DuPont 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet Caterpillar 33 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Hamburger Helper 34 John Andretti Chevrolet Taco Bell 36 Patrick Carpentier Toyota Wave Energy Drink 37 Tony Raines Chevrolet Long John Silver's 39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet NCO 42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet Target 43 Reed Sorenson Dodge Reynolds Wrap 44 A.J. Allmendinger Dodge Paralyzed Veterans of America 47 Marcos Ambrose Toyota Clorox / Kingsford / Bush's Beans 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 66 Dave Blaney Toyota Prism Motorsports 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge Mobil 1 78 Regan Smith Chevrolet World Vision / Furniture Row Companies 82 Scott Speed* Toyota Red Bull 83 Brian Vickers Toyota Red Bull 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Amp Energy / National Guard 96 Bobby Labonte Ford DLP 98 Paul Menard Ford Turtle Wax / Menards 99 Carl Edwards Ford Aflac 113 Max Papis* Toyota GEICO 171 Mike Bliss Chevrolet TRG Motorsports 187 Joe Nemechek Toyota NEMCO Motorsports
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