| | | | | | | 11 - Denny Hamlin | Chesterfield, VA |
| | Primary Sponsor: FedEx Express
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Car Owner: JD Gibbs
Team: Joe Gibbs Racing Denny Hamlin saw success rather quickly as he ran his first full season in the NEXTEL Cup Series in 2006. He had made his Cup debut a year earlier, after being tapped to replace driver Jason Leffler in the No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet. He made seven starts, and had three top-10s and one pole.
At the end of 2005, he was named driver of the No. 11 FedEx Chevrolet for 2006, and proceeded to win two races, three poles and was the first rookie to make the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup, finishing third. Hamlin was also named the 2006 NEXTEL Cup Rookie of the Year.
Hamlin starting racing go-karts when he was just seven years old, the beginning of a kart-racing career that would eventually include 127 feature victories, three track championships and two state championships.
With four poles, five feature victories, and 10 top-fives, he won the Southside Speedway track championship in Limited Dash in 1997. During the same year at age 16, he was named rookie of the year at Southside Speedway and Langley Speedway as he competed in the Mini-Stock Division. He became the youngest champion at Langley, setting a track record at 18.025. Hamlin racked up five feature victories in the Grand Stock Division in 1998 and 1999, with 20 top-fives and 38 top-10s.
Competing in the NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Late Model Division in 2000, he was named Southside Speedway rookie of the year.
Hamlin made his Busch Series debut in November, 2004 at Darlington, starting 27th and finishing eighth.
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