Why No. 60 was Hamlin's most emotional win ever

The build-up to his 60th career win in the NASCAR Cup Series led Denny Hamlin to admit that Sunday was the most emotional he had ever been in his career.

“When I moved the bar from 50 to 60, I had to stew on that for a few years,” Hamlin said. 

Hamlin hit the 50-win mark in 2023. He entered this season at 54 and was reluctant to say 60 would happen sooner rather than later, given the number of wins he was averaging per season. Las Vegas Motor Speedway was Hamlin’s sixth win of the year, the most he’s had since a seven-win season in 2020.

“When I won the Daytona 500, I had always hoped to win the Daytona 500,” Hamlin said. “There's a letter that I wrote when I was eight years old that's in my garage that my mom kept that says, ‘My wish is to win the Daytona 500. I hope that this comes true on February 18th, 1998.’ I thought when I was 18 years old, I was going to be in Cup for some reason. There's something about manifesting, because I've won it twice on February 18th. Some things are kind of meant to be. 

“So, while that took 30 years to happen, that was just one race. There were no other implications to it, right? The reason this one is more is because of all the things. I got the home things, we got the lawsuit things, we've got just the Final 4, the 60. There were just so many other factors that played into today, which is why I think that it's my biggest win. Certainly, one that I was absolutely the most excited about.”

The home life includes Hamlin wanting his father, Dennis, to see him win his 60th race. Dennis, who is 75 years old, has not been doing well health-wise, although Denny did not elaborate on specifics. Hamlin says he owes his racing career to his father and mother, Mary Lou, for their sacrifices in getting him to the point where he was discovered by J.D. Gibbs and signed to Joe Gibbs Racing.

On the legal front, Hamlin could potentially win the Cup Series championship on Nov. 2 and then be in court on Dec. 1 as the antitrust lawsuit brought by 23XI Racing and Front Row against NASCAR begins. Sunday’s win clinched Hamlin a spot in the championship race for the first time since 2021.

And when it comes to 60 wins, Hamlin is now tied with Kevin Harvick for 10th on the all-time wins list. 

All of which came together to show Hamlin in tears on the in-car camera after taking the checkered flag. By the time Hamlin came around to the frontstretch for his celebration and television interview, he was still visibly emotional and got choked up when talking to NBC Sports.

“I'm probably softer than what I put off,” Hamlin said. “I maybe shed a tear during a love story in a movie or something if it's a really emotional moment. I'll never let my kids see it. But I do have feelings. I know it's hard to believe.”

Hamlin has never been as emotional, certainly with tears, as he was Sunday. There have been races that brought joy, disappointment, and frustration, but Las Vegas was a different side of Hamlin. And he wasn’t going to try to suppress it when the cameras were there for his interview.

The victory came down to a 14-lap sprint to the finish. Hamlin lined up sixth on the restart and took the lead with four laps to go by driving around the outside of teammate Chase Briscoe with four tires.

“I just know how much work it took for this to happen,” Hamlin said. “It didn't just happen. It wasn't just luck. It was just so gratifying because of all the things I talked about. Then I had the ball at the very end and made it. Maybe y'all played recreational sports as a kid, had that game-winning moment, but it's just so big for me personally because this is what I do, this is what I'm paid to do. 

“I don't know. It will take a few days for it all to sink in. I knew there was no chance I was holding it back, no chance. Just let it go.”