May 3, 2026, Austin, Texas, U.S: Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin 11 in action during the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Wurth 400 Cup Race at the Texas Motor Speedway track in Fort Worth, Texas. Motorsports 2026 - NASCAR Wurth 400 Cup Race PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY - ZUMAw300 20260503_zaf_w300_086 Copyright: xDanxWozniakx
May 3, 2026, Austin, Texas, U.S: Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin 11 in action during the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Wurth 400 Cup Race at the Texas Motor Speedway track in Fort Worth, Texas. Motorsports 2026 - NASCAR Wurth 400 Cup Race PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY - ZUMAw300 20260503_zaf_w300_086 Copyright: xDanxWozniakx
May 17, 2026, 11:11 PM CUT
Denny Hamlin Outlasts Chaos and Seals $1 Million at Dover
After several near misses throughout the season, The Joe Gibbs Racing star Denny Hamlin survived a chaotic All-Star Race to secure a $1 million payday and his second career exhibition win.
The #11 JGR driver started the race from pole position and finished second in the first 75-lap segment behind 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace. He later finished in the top three during the second segment, maintaining his advantage heading into the final stretch.
He led 42 laps more than his teammate Chase Briscoe. After taking the lead from Briscoe with 29 laps remaining, Hamlin held off his teammate to win the race by 0.887 seconds.
Post-race while talking to the media, the 23XI co-owner said, "It makes it a lot easier when you’ve got a car this fast, honestly."
The performance underscored just how dominant the #11 Toyota was, even with the format changes.
March 28, 2026, Martinsville, Va, USA: DENNY HAMLIN 11 of Chesterfield, VA gets ready to qualify for The Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, VA. Martinsville USA - ZUMAa161 20260328_aaa_a161_045 Copyright: xWalterxG.xArcexSr.x
March 28, 2026, Martinsville, Va, USA: DENNY HAMLIN 11 of Chesterfield, VA gets ready to qualify for The Cook Out 400 at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, VA. Martinsville USA - ZUMAa161 20260328_aaa_a161_045 Copyright: xWalterxG.xArcexSr.x
"We strive to be No. 1. We did it today,” Hamlin said reflecting on his team's performance in the race.
The top five were rounded out by Legacy Motor Club's Erik Jones in third, Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Dillon in fourth, and Trackhouse Racing driver Connor Zilisch in fifth.
This marked Hamlin's second All-Star Race victory. His first victory was in 2015 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, where he held off Kevin Harvick to take home the $1 million prize.
Denny Hamlin Weighs in on the New All-Star Race Format
NASCAR's new All-Star format initially faced backlash from fans and drivers, but the resulting chaos on track proved to be a crowd-pleaser.
While speaking to the media during his post-race interview, Hamlin talked about how he liked the format and how he could use it to his advantage.
"I liked it. It challenged us to have to go through traffic. Otherwise, I mean, you could go out there, and you could lead a bunch of laps. I definitely like the invert. Obviously, it caused some chaos there, took out some good cars,” he said.
The format shuffled several frontrunners deeper into the field, forcing drivers to battle through traffic instead of controlling the race comfortably from the front.
Hamlin further added, "Overall this is a typical All-Star Race when that stuff happens. I just knew the game-changer for us was long runs and, obviously, the ability to pass when we were behind someone."
He has not lost a race at the ‘Monster Mile’ since 2023. This marked his fourth victory at the track.
Read more at the RFK Racing Digest!
Written by
Chionia Libania Colaco
Edited by
Pulkit Prabhav