NASCAR
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Sign Multi-Year Contract Extension
HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. – Announced Monday, Joe Gibbs Racing veteran driver Denny Hamlin has signed a multi-year contract extension. Hamlin, 42, will remain behind the wheel of JGR’s No. 11 Toyota Camry TRD in the NASCAR Cup Series. The largest free agency question mark left for 2024 has now been answered.
”It is amazing to think it has been almost 20 years since J.D. (Gibbs) first saw him race and we signed him to that first contract,” said Joe Gibbs, team owner. ”He has been a big part of Joe Gibbs Racing ever since then and we look forward to that continuing for years to come.”
Hamlin is currently JGR’s longest-tenured driver, making his Cup Series debut with the team at Kansas Speedway on October 9, 2005. Since then, the Chesterfield, Virginia native has over 600 Cup Series starts, all of them coming in the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11. Hamlin is tied at the moment for 13th on the all-time wins list with 50 career victories. Some of Hamlin’s career achievements include three Daytona 500 wins (2016, 2019, 2020), three Southern 500 victories (2010, 2017, 2021), one Coca-Cola 600 (2022) and one All-Star Race (2015). He has qualified for the Playoffs a record-tying 17 times, advanced to the Championship 4 in four seasons (2014, 2019, 2020, 2021). As of early September 2023, Hamlin has earned 217 top-five finishes, 333 top-10s, 40 pole awards, and led 13,920 laps.
”Joe Gibbs Racing has been my home for almost 20 years now,” said Hamlin. ”My relationship with Joe (Gibbs), my team, and everyone at JGR means a lot to me. We have accomplished so much together over the years. I’m excited to finally announce this so we can put all our focus on chasing the championship.”
Gibbs was a guest on this week’s Actions Detrimental with Denny Hamlin podcast to talk about this news. Hamlin’s weekly podcast can be found at DirtyMoMedia.com and on any major podcast platform.
Terms of the agreement will not be disclosed, JGR said.
Hamlin made recent comments saying that this deal was held up with negotiating 23XI Racing’s future. It is now certain that Hamlin’s team co-owned with Michael Jordan will remain with Toyota and as a JGR partner.
With this major cloud of uncertainty past him, Hamlin is now fully focused on battling for his first Cup Series title. In the Playoff opening race at Darlington, Hamlin was head and shoulders better than the field. Only a mid-race loose wheel set the 11 back, forcing a 25th-place result. Still above the cut line, expect Hamlin to be in deep contention for the 2023 Bill France Cup.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Johnathan Bachman/Getty Images
