Hamlin wants to show Daytona win 'not a fluke'

Returning to Daytona International Speedway as the defending Daytona 500 winner does not make things easier for Denny Hamlin.

"You think once you win (the Daytona 500) it's like a weight is lifted off and you can breathe easy now, but you want to win two," Hamlin said this week. "You want to show that one is not a fluke."

Hamlin is putting pressure on himself to repeat in next Sunday's 59th running of The Great American Race. He admitted as much when asked. Plus, Hamlin's good friend Michael Waltrip has won the Daytona 500 twice and frequently reminds him there are only a small group of drivers who are on that list.

"I feel like over the last few years we've given it a great shot at it and last year was obviously a great finish, but every time we go onto the racetrack at Daytona, I feel like we can win," Hamlin said. "We've won the Clash three times. So, we're capable of doing it. If anyone can go back-to-back, this is the year for us."
February at Daytona has certainly been kind to Hamlin over the years.

A three-time winner of the Saturday exhibition race, this year known as the Advance Auto Parts Clash, Hamlin will start his 2017 Speedweeks first looking to defend that victory. He also has two wins in the Duel qualifying races. Combine his restrictor plate drafting ability with Toyota horsepower, and Hamlin is an expected contender each time the series rolls into both Daytona and Talladega Superspeedway.

However, Hamlin believes winning will be a taller task this year.

The Daytona 500 will be the first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race run under the sport's new race format, where events are split into three stages. The first two stages will reward points to the top 10 finishers, while the winner of a stage will receive a point toward the playoffs. The winner of the overall race will receive five playoff points.

"The race will be different," Hamlin said, noting NASCAR has made the sport like many others where scoring is done during the event.

"It's going to make a lot more intensity from my standpoint from the beginning right when the green flag drops," he continued. "I think every race will matter, every lap will matter, and you can't afford to just sit back and wait until the end of the event at the Daytona 500."

A common strategy at restrictor plate races is to fall behind the pack in hopes of avoiding being caught up in an accident. Many drivers have employed that in recent years, some with better success than others. But Hamlin has always preferred to be aggressive by running hard near the front of the field.

Don't expect that to change if Hamlin wants to become the first driver since Sterling Marlin (1994-95) to repeat in the Daytona 500.

"I just don't think you can afford to give up those stage points at the beginning (by laying back)," Hamlin said. "My job will be to race to the front from the very beginning and try to stay there."