Denny Hamlin Still Hasn't Forgotten How Chase Elliott Stole Kansas From Him
Denny Hamlin remembers exactly how it went down. September 28th at Kansas Speedway, last year's playoff race. One lap left in overtime. Elliott was sitting fifth. Hamlin was running second in his No. 11 Camry, right behind Bubba Wallace's Toyota. Then Hamlin made his move, steering to the inside and forcing Wallace wide through the final two corners. But as both Toyotas got pushed wide, Elliott dove to the inside and stole the whole thing for Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet. That one still stings.
The Aggression That Backfired
On Saturday before practice for Sunday's AdventHealth 400 at Kansas, Hamlin finally broke down what happened that day. He doesn't make excuses, but he doesn't shy away from the truth either. "I was trying to go for it, certainly, and used a little bit too much aggression, for sure, in Turn 3," Hamlin said. What made it worse? It wasn't just a single-car loss. It played into the bigger manufacturer battle. Toyota had the speed. Chevrolet stole the win. "You go from winning one to now your competition actually won," Hamlin explained, acknowledging both the personal sting and the broader implications.
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👉 Claim Your Free $10 at KalshiStill, Hamlin keeps it real about racing at this level. "When you have teammates, manufacturer guys that you all share information with, we're going to always be right around each other," he said. "So sometimes those racing incidents happen in one out of 20 times."
The Kansas Curse
But here's what really gets to Hamlin: he owns Kansas. Four victories at the track. Yet somehow, he's watching wins slip away. "For the last six years, if someone else wins a Kansas race, I'm just trying to figure out how we didn't win, because we're always just so fast here," Hamlin said. The numbers back up his frustration. He's found 10 to 12 different ways to not win at Kansas recently. Even more stunning, in the last 11 races at the track, Kyle Larson is the only driver to notch a repeat win. "The fact that we haven't is just criminal," Hamlin said. Sunday's race gives him another shot to change that narrative and finally get back in Victory Lane at a track that should be his home turf.
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