Denny Hamlin gives pit crew props for salvaging P23 finish at Watkins Glen

Denny Hamlin showed his appreciation for the pit crew of the No. 11 car for helping him finish the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Watkins Glen on Sunday. On the Actions Detrimental podcast, the 43-year-old NASCAR star talked about his pit crew working hard to get his car right after two wrecks.

“Very, very fortunate that the entire FedEx pit crew team, mechanics, road team kept that thing going,” Hamlin said. “They just did an amazing, amazing job of getting that car rolling in a straight direction.”

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The first wreck happened half a lap in the 90-lap race when Kyle Busch hit Hamlin after he and Christopher Bell “spun around in the Bus Stop,” per NASCAR.com. The second wreck happened during Lap 46 when it back into the outside wall after battling with Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson. The pit crew and other team members did what they could to keep Hamlin in the race, leading him to finish 23rd. Hamlin collected 15 points and is below the playoff elimination line.

Denny Hamlin reacts to wrecks at Watkins Glen

“It sucks because I knew the damage was bad,” Hamlin said about his wreck during the opening lap.  “I was really looking forward to this race, believe it or not, because we made some really good adjustments overnight to help with where I felt like we were going to be a little bit off. I wanted to just race and see what my car had. Just never had a chance.”

“You’re a whisker from finishing dead last, not getting off of DVP,” Hamlin’s crew chief Chris Gabehart told NASCAR.com. “Once my team, who I’m so proud of, Brandon Griffith my car chief, all the mechanics, the pit crew — it takes everyone being coordinated to work your way out of a hole like that in just seven minutes. I can’t say enough how proud I am for even giving us a shot. The minute we left that scenario, the new goal was to try to figure out a way to run about 25th or 26th because realistically, I thought it was the best we could do with the damage we had and at least give ourselves a shot to go to Bristol.”

Hamlin is looking to win his first Cup Series title after doing nearly everything else in the Cup Series during his career. He is a champion owner, though as his 23XI driver Tyler Reddick won the Cup Series regular season title.