For Hamlin and his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota staff, which means focusing now on getting probably the most at tracks on which they’re usually sturdy and executing nicely in races wherein they’ve successful pace.
Sunday night time’s race at Richmond (Va.) Raceway – the Virginia native’s house observe – is a main alternative. He has 4 wins and 18 prime fives in 34 profession begins on the ¾-mile observe along with his most up-to-date victory coming on this race two years in the past.
“It is a observe all the time the place we’re beginning to get into the swing of the tracks the place we’re going to be contenders each week. This sort of kicks off that a part of the schedule,” Hamlin stated Saturday.
“I believe all of us sort of know the place we’re at now. We’re six races in. We all know what our strengths are. We all know what our weaknesses are, and now we simply must capitalize after we go to tracks like this that we’re all the time contenders.
“It’ll be an execution recreation. It’s not going to be a pace recreation. We can have that. It’s ensuring we execute.”
Hamlin has positively proven the power to compete often for wins. His win at Bristol locked him into the playoffs already, he’s fourth within the sequence standings and has led probably the most laps within the sequence (275).
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing, Mavis Specific Oil Change Toyota Camry
Photograph by: Danny Hansen / NKP / Motorsport Pictures
“With the pit crew I’ve this yr, they’ve been on it. I really feel like our pace has been pretty much as good because it’s ever been,” he stated.
“We’re operating contained in the top-five greater than we ever have, although we’ve got not completed there fairly but. I really feel fairly good about it.”
Hamlin will line up eleventh in Sunday night time’s race after simply lacking the lower to make the ultimate spherical of Saturday’s qualifying.
That’s not a foul signal – two of his 4 Richmond wins have come beginning thirteenth or worse.
“I’m excited for this race. All week I’ve been excited to get right here and sort of see the place we stack up,” he stated. “Actually, with the historical past we’ve got right here during the last three or 4 races right here at Richmond, being in competition, I really feel fairly strongly about it.
“I’d say that that is one which traditionally that I’ve all the time been good at, JGR has all the time been actually good at, after which with the momentum it looks like our automobiles have, and our producer – hopefully, we will tack on that little additional pace that we’ve proven right here recently.”
