Denny Hamlin wins rain-shortened SRX Series race at Stafford Speedway

In his first-ever Camping World SRX Series start, NASCAR star Denny Hamlin came away with the checkered flag at Stafford Speedway. The crowd at the Stafford Springs, Connecticut track was huge. They were ready to watch some great motorsports superstars race out on the track.

SRX does things a little differently from NASCAR. The qualifying session is set up like most dirt tracks with two heat races. After the first heat race, the field is inverted and an average finish between the two heats is how the starting order is determined.

During those heat races, things got intense. Drivers like Clint Bowyer and Ryan Newman were not afraid to beat and bang. Haillie Deegan got used up in Heat 2 and had to fight her way through the field again.

Denny Hamlin won the first heat and was unable to repeat in the second. However, the main feature was different. In his FedEx car, Hamlin looked like he was swimming through the field. Hamlin took the lead over defending winner Ryan Newman and led with 20 laps to go. That’s when lightning flashed in the background, ending the race and giving Hamlin the win.

1 for 1.

Lightning cuts short the first SRX race of the season. Denny Hamlin is the winner. pic.twitter.com/rhMiiyPMyj

— Mr Matthew CFB (@MrMatthewCFB) July 14, 2023

This was a fun event. We saw drivers beating and banging throughout the field. There were a few spins that shook things up. Hell, Tony Kanaan lost his entire hood from his car. We saw drivers get into backups and that made this race even more fun. Thursday Night Thunder is back on ESPN! Denny Hamlin took home the first win of the SRX Series season.

Denny Hamlin had a lot of fun during SRX race

Throwing 12 drivers onto a track from all backgrounds, all generations, in cars that are identical to one another, that’s how you get an awesome race. The SRX Series has found a way to make superstar racing a reality and it has only gotten better each year.

After taking the win in his series debut, Denny Hamlin was happy with how the event went.

“This is a lot of fun,” Hamlin said, via Racer.com. “From a driver’s standpoint, knowing you’re in the same equipment as [everyone] else. They don’t let you do any changes to these cars that not every car has. There’s no spotters. A lot of the contact you see is because you just can’t see the people around you. Man, this is so much fun. This is short track racing, the grassroots racing we want to showcase.”

For those of you hoping that Hamlin is going to hop into another SRX Series race, he might have other thoughts. After the event, the JGR driver went on Twitter to say he might retire with his perfect record.

Still, Denny Hamlin is a racer. A short track racer. He’s going to be tempted to come back.