Denny Hamlin becomes winningest driver in NASCAR Cup Series history without a championship

The Bristol Night Race was a success for Denny Hamlin as he won his third race of the year and the 51st race of his Cup Series career. While he moved in front of Junior Johnson on the all-time wins list, he also made some unfortunate NASCAR history.

By winning his 51st race in the Cup Series, Denny Hamlin is now the winningest driver in the history of the sport without a championship. Based on his first-round performances, he might be well on his way to correcting that statistic.

For now, Denny is the best driver to never win it all. Of course, the driver is more than happy with his Hall of Fame career. But he knows that he’s let a few chances slip through his fingers.

“Yeah, I mean, I’ve had a lot of great opportunities,” Hamlin said after his Bristol win. “This era of NASCAR racing, it’s tougher to win than it’s ever been. There’s more cars capable of winning. We all run the same parts and pieces nowadays. Finding an edge is so difficult.

We all share each other’s data, so there is no secrets for drivers anymore. To find edges, it’s really, really difficult.”

Consistency is key. Championship 4 appearances are key. Statistically, if you keep making that final four, then you have a chance to win.

“Certainly nights like tonight are certainly pleasing after having a couple weeks of, like, ‘Darn, we should have got ’em.’ Keep knocking on the door, keep showing up, keep making the final four, eventually your number will be called. Hopefully, this is the year for it to be called.”

Denny Hamlin feels like he’s got a pretty good shot at winning this championship if he can keep it rolling.

Denny Hamlin has to be the favorite, right?

Let’s break down the first round for Hamlin real quick. The 11-car was leading at Darlington when a loose wheel cost them a win or a top-5 finish. He was arguably the best car all night and it was taken in the final stage due to a mistake on pit road.

At Kansas, he was lining up another win before Chris Buescher blew his tire and brought out the restart. Hamlin let the field drop back and didn’t get a good restart. Still, he was P2 that night.

Denny Hamlin then follows it up by waiting patiently and then unleashing all he had at Bristol. Christopher Bell swept the stages, but it was Hamlin who would lead 142 laps and the most important, final lap.

Heading to Texas to start the Round of 12, Hamlin likely has another chance to win. The intermediate tracks have been excellent for the 11 team. Let’s see if they can follow up their performance in these next three races.