Denny Hamlin originally planned to have surgery to repair the torn ACL in his left knee on Monday, but instead did some slicing and dicing on the track.
The doctors will get their chance on Wednesday.
``I was actually going to try to do it after the race, but now we have Victory Lane celebrations, so I can't do it,'' Hamlin said. ``It's a good thing for us.''
Hamlin, who injured his knee playing basketball in January, originally intended to wait until after the season to have the surgery, but said the knee had become bothersome.
He said rehabilitation will begin two days after the surgery, and it is his hope that he will be ready to get back in the car for the next race at Phoenix on April 10.
NASCAR's premier series is taking its traditional week off for Easter.
The team also plans to have Casey Mears on hand at Phoenix and for a few races after that as a relief driver, and Hamlin said he could also practice and qualify the car if needed.
``Trust me, when I come back, I'm going to come back strong,'' he said.
