Denny Hamlin ­– No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry TRD Preview – NASCAR Cup Series at Watkins Glen International

No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry TRD News and Notes

  • HAMLIN AT WATKINS GLEN: Denny Hamlin is a former NASCAR Cup Series winner at Watkins Glen International after visiting victory lane in 2016. That day, Hamlin led the final 10 laps to secure his only road course victory at the Cup Series level. He has recorded four top-five finishes in his past five Watkins Glen starts, including a fifth-place result last August.
  • RICHMOND RECAP: Hamlin finished fourth in last Sunday’s race at Richmond Raceway after a solid overall performance for the No. 11 team. He finished second and third, respectively, in the opening two stages and appeared poised to challenge for the win after an aggressive pit call from crew chief Chris Gabehart during the final stage. Unfortunately for Hamlin, a miscue during the team’s final green-flag pit stop put him too far behind to make up the deficit to eventual winner Kevin Harvick.
  • TRENDING UPWARD: After posting back-to-back top-five finishes, Hamlin has vaulted to a season-best 12th in the overall points standings. His 131 points over the last three races are 12 more than the next best (Joey Logano, 119 points) and 32 points better than third-best (Bubba Wallace, 99 points).
  • SPORT CLIPS: Sport Clips will be featured as the primary sponsor of Hamlin’s No. 11 Camry for Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen International. The sports-themed haircutting franchise based in Georgetown, Texas is a longtime supporter of Joe Gibbs Racing dating back to 2009 and has more than 1,850 stores in the United States and Canada.
  • JGR AT WATKINS GLEN: Joe Gibbs Racing has earned seven NASCAR Cup Series wins at Watkins Glen International. In 73 combined starts at the track, the organization has racked up 29 top-five finishes, 45 top-10s, four pole awards, and 555 laps led. While the team has not won at the track since Hamlin’s victory in 2016, in the past four trips to the New York road course, JGR drivers have claimed 12 top-five finishes, 14 top-10s and a 5.0-average finishing position in 16 combined starts. Kyle Busch and Tony Stewart join Hamlin on the list of drivers who have taken JGR to victory lane at Watkins Glen.
  • TUNE IN: Coverage of this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International begins Sunday, August 21, at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network, MRN Radio, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

 

Denny Hamlin, Driver of the No. 11 Sport Clips Toyota Camry TRD

What do you expect this weekend at Watkins Glen based on other road course races this season?

“We’re definitely still working on our road course program. It is not where it needs to be, and we know that as a team and as a manufacturer. It has been pretty frustrating this season because it’s not from a lack of effort. Everyone at Joe Gibbs Racing and TRD are doing everything they possibly can to find those improvements to get us back up front on the road courses. We’re making progress, but realistically, if we can run inside the top 10 and avoid mistakes this weekend, that would be a good day for us to continue learning and improving as we look ahead to the ROVAL in the playoffs.”

JGR PR