Denny Hamlin has been one of the few active drivers who has been able to master the "Tricky Triangle." While the majority of the NASCAR garage praises him for the same, Hamlin has given credit to his former teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, Tony Stewart. 

On Saturday, Hamlin claimed his sixth pole position at the Pocono Raceway and his 51st career pole. He put in a lap with a best speed of 173.250 mph to do so.

Over the years, Hamlin has put in some memorable performances at the raceway and has somewhat mastered the 2.5-mile tri-oval. During his media availability pre-race, Denny Hamlin was questioned by Mason Smith about what helps him succeed at the tri-oval. He said (via Cup Scene on YouTube):

"Being with Joe Gibbs Racing when I came here back in '06, you know, they had some really good stuff going on with their cars."

Hamlin further credited Stewart, who had been racing for JGR for seven years before he arrived in 2006, for his contribution to his understanding of the track.

"You know, some development that Tony Stewart found in 2005 that I was able to latch on to. So, it really was  just good timing on my part and a track that really suits my style," he added.

During his rookie year in 2006, Denny Hamlin won pole position at Pocono, a track considered tough for rookies. Not just that, he also led a race-high 83 laps and won the race, the first of his Cup career. 

Hamlin has a great amount of success at the track, with seven wins to boast. The No. 11 Toyota driver also moved ahead of Bill Elliott and Ken Schrader with his sixth pole position at Pocono. 

However, this is not the first time that Hamlin has spoken about Tony Stewart with regard to helping him in his career. 

When Denny Hamlin Opened Up About a Warning Given by Tony Stewart

When driving at 200 mph, on-track incidents can cause emotions to quickly take over, and moments of frustration can lead to loss of composure.

When Denny Hamlin entered NASCAR around two decades ago, his teammate at the time, Tony Stewart, passed down advice for how a driver needs to maintain composure in any given situation.

Hamlin spoke about the same during an episode of his "Actions Detrimental" podcast in May. He said:

"I think that when I came into the series, it was one of the things that, like Tony Stewart preached to me, and it was tough coming from Tony Stewart, but it was like you got to find a way to not lose your s*** when someone barely makes contact with you."

The three-time Daytona 500 winner has kept this advice from the three-time Cup Series champion in his mind throughout his career so far.

Whether it was Denny Hamlin’s understanding of Pocono’s unique layout or learning to maintain his composure in the heat of the moment, Hamlin continues to credit Tony Stewart. Years later, those lessons continue to help as the Joe Gibbs Racing driver even in the twilight of his career.

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Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco

Edited by

Yash Kotak