Denny Hamlin looks for Pocono glory — and beyond
Denny Hamlin is betting he can repeat his early success at Pocono Raceway.
Hamlin’s first career win came from pole position at Pocono in 2006. He backed up that accomplishment six weeks later by earning the pole and leading 151 of 200 laps on the way to his second Cup victory.
But then it took three seasons before Hamlin scored his next Pocono win last August.
Hamlin, who qualified fifth on Friday with a lap of 168.868 mph, boasts the best average finish (9.5) on the 2.5-miler, but acknowledges he hasn’t been as strong at Pocono since 2008 when Turn 3 was repaved, forcing the field to use the high line.
“I’ve struggled to run a lap without braking,” Hamlin said. “... We won here in several different cars ... They didn’t have that patch over there. I felt like when they put that patch over in Turn 3, that really took away the advantage that I had ... everyone had to run up there. I had to run up there, so I had to adapt.”
And adapt he did. Hamlin, who started sixth after the field was set by points, led 91 laps before his third win here last August. Despite Hamlin’s self-deprecating post-patch assessment, the performance proved to be a confidence booster.
He’s got more than just confidence this weekend.
Although he grew up racing on short tracks, the raceway suits Hamlin’s style. With the additional horsepower Joe Gibbs Racing picked up in the offseason, Hamlin has reason to be excited, knowing he can pull away from the competition.
“I go every week expecting to win, the only difference is I just put myself in the fantasy team this week,” Hamlin said.
Hamlin is fifth in the standings, 168 points out of first, and he's less worried about who's ahead of him and more concerned about who's behind him — his game plan is to continue padding the margin between his position and 13th place. Hamlin says the No. 11 FedEx team already is testing set-ups and strategies for the Chase and calls the process “a never-ending homework project that doesn’t end until September.”
When assessing the competition for September, the list of contenders isn’t long. It’s the same cast of characters that Hamlin has dealt with for the last five seasons. And despite Jimmie Johnson’s recent slump, Hamlin refuses to take the four-time champion’s team for granted.
“Right now, if I had to put them in a bag, I’d still say the 48, the 24 (Jeff Gordon), the 31 (Jeff Burton), 18 (Kyle Busch) and (my) 11,” Hamlin said. “They are the cars that are consistent week in and week out.
“I left the 29 (Kevin Harvick) out of there. He is rightfully the points leader and he’s there because he’s consistent and he’s in the top 10 mostly every week. That’s what wins championships so I can’t discredit that either.”
Trading places
With both Red Bull Toyotas barely finishing inside the top 30 at Charlotte Motor Speedway last Sunday, it was obvious that something had to change.
On Tuesday, Red Bull GM Jay Frye decided to swap crew chiefs and six teammates of the Nos. 82 and 83 teams. For Scott Speed, he will have the direction of Ryan Pemberton, who led Brian Vickers into the Chase for the Sprint Cup last season. Crew chief Jimmy Elledge will be reunited with Casey Mears. That driver/crew chief combination enjoyed success at Ganassi Racing before each moved on.
Frye says with Vickers being sidelined due to blood clots, it allows the organization an opportunity to experiment. Given that both drivers, including former Charlotte 600 winner Mears, were lapped by rookie Kevin Conway last weekend, there’s no time like the present to try something new.
“The crew chief dynamic is something that is very unique to this sport,” Frye said. “We’ve all seen it, where different combinations have different effects, and that’s what we’re looking at. We have the luxury right now to do this. Hopefully gaining momentum this season and then going into next season.”
Oh, the little things
Qualifying third might not seem like a victory for a lot of people. For Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has suffered through inconsistency and ridicule this season, starting on the second row for Sunday’s Gillett Fusion ProGlide 500 is something to build upon.
Earnhardt’s lap of 169.097 mph was 0.122 seconds off the pace of polesitter Kyle Busch.
“We’ve had a terrible month,” said Earnhardt, who hasn’t posted a top 10 finish since Texas on April 18. “We left Charlotte and came down here and I have qualified pretty good here in the past and we had a good run today.
“Every little thing helps the confidence. We didn’t prove nothing to nobody outside of the race track by qualifying there. But to ourselves, it helps our confidence a little bit as a team.”
Numbers game
Geoff Bodine was 40th fastest in time trials with a lap of 165.411 mph in the No. 36 Tommy Baldwin Racing Toyota. It’s the first time Bodine, 61, has qualified for a race in 201 events. The last race Bodine ran was Dover in Sept. 2004. He finished 39th. Bodine’s last start at Pocono was this race in 2004. In 39 Pocono starts, Bodine has three wins, 11 top-fives and 16 top 10 finishes. He’s led 810 laps around the 2.5-mile tri-oval.
Say what?
Bodine on making the field:
“I love it. I love the competition, the challenge. I have taken care of myself, changed my diet, what I’ve put in my body, and my body has changed. It’s better than even what it was in my late 40s. I’m excited to show people that. I feel better, think better and I haven’t lost reflexes. That’s what it takes.
“I’ve done some racing and I know I can do this.”
