| | | | | | BETTER LATE... | Hamlin's finishing positions finally match team's efforts | |
| | By SceneDaily Staff Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin has been on a hot streak of late and heads to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend riding a streak of four consecutive top-10 finishes.
In fact, Hamlin has five top-10s in the last six races, a stretch that has seen him climb from 32nd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings after the season’s second race to sixth place. That has him in position to challenge for the championship for the third consecutive season, but he's not thinking that far down the line just yet.
Right now, his thoughts are on Sunday’s Aarons 499 at Talladega.
As he looks over his recent stretch, which includes a win at Martinsville Speedway, Hamlin says his Mike Ford-led team isn’t doing anything different. But now they are finishing as well as they are running.
“I think the fact that we aren't panicked or trying to change the way we approach races is what has helped us most,” Hamlin said. “I think everyone wants to win so bad that it's easy to throw away the book and see if you can make some big changes, but that is rarely the answer in this sport. I've had some of the guys who have been in the sport a lot longer than I have, guys that I look up to, tell me that luck always changes, so don't let it get to you.
“Keep doing what you're doing, and you'll eventually get the finishes you work for. That's started happening for us now, we're getting the finishes that really reflect just how good our cars have been and how good this team is."
As to racing at Talladega itself, Hamlin says that the track is smooth since it was repaved, but that’s not the reason he thinks there has been a lot of single-file racing in there in recent years. He believes that is because drivers are waiting until later in races to make their moves.
Hamlin clearly has learned more about the track, turning in his top finish of fourth at the site in his last race there. Prior to that, he had a pair of 21st-place finishes and one of 22nd.
This time, he plans to manage his race carefully. Maybe he’ll be one of those drivers waiting until late in the race to pounce.
“There is some movement from front to back and vice versa, but it’s mostly to see if you have the car to make those moves when the race is on the line,” he said of the restrictor-plate race. “No one wants to be in the middle of the pack in case things go sideways, and I think there is a tendency to want to be out front or in the back where you are able to avoid any incidents. There is a point, and I experienced it firsthand here last fall last year when I was leading, that everyone decides to go.
“It was a strange feeling being out front because I knew it was coming; it was just a matter of time. Then someone flipped a switch, and it was standard Talladega racing to the finish."
| | Posted April 23, 2008 , 5:48 pm EST
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