Hamlin nabs a top five but calls it a 'lackluster day' as championship gap widens again

Denny Hamlin described his Sunday at Charlotte Motor Speedway as lackluster, an acknowledgment that came even with his result being fifth place.

But as Hamlin knows, given his fight for the NASCAR Cup Series championship, those numbers need to be better compared with what his rivals continue to do. And it was the third straight week Hamlin didn't capitalize as expected on an intermediate track, which has been the Toyota camp's strength.

“It was, and it wasn’t,” Hamlin said. “We didn’t have a race-winning car [today] when it really counted at the end. So, it wasn’t a missed opportunity from that standpoint. I think last week was that for us. Yeah, it just seems like we’re pretty good, just not top two right now. So, we have to … figure out where we have to improve.

“I felt good about where I was all day until the very end right there; it just wasn’t good enough.”

Hamlin thought it was a race-winning Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota through the first 100 laps of the Bank of America 400. After starting 12th, Hamlin had moved comfortably into the top 10 when the competition caution flew on lap 36. Then, the team was penalized after a crew member fell over the wall and touched the hot side of pit road while trying to retrieve a tire. In the process, it also interfered with Connor Zilisch's pit crew, who pitted in the stall ahead of them.

“I wish we would have qualified; I felt like we could have [had] a little better pit selection there, and wouldn’t have had the [No.] 88,” Hamlin said. “But they worked with us the whole race. Connor and his team pitted the second time … a couple of times, so I appreciate that.”

Charlotte was the fourth of six Chase races in which Hamlin or his team stubbed their toe. Hamlin hit the wall at Darlington Raceway after a slow pit stop. Another slow pit stop came a week later at St. Louis. Hamlin spun and damaged the car in Las Vegas. And then Sunday was the safety penalty.

Despite the latest setback, Hamlin moved through the field again at a steady pace and still felt confident about his race car. But once back in the top five, Hamlin felt stuck in the third-to-fourth-place range, and as the weather cooled and the track got more overcast, the car kept falling away.

“I thought we were best when we were at the back of the pack,” said Hamlin. “In that first stage, I thought we were really strong and coming on strong, but the track, when it cooled off, it just was not what [we] really planned on.

“It certainly leveled the field, and it made my car a little bit worse than what it was during the day.”

Hamlin lost eight points to championship leader Kyle Larson. The gap is 49 with four races to go.

“We’ve got to execute better, be a little faster, all the above,” Hamlin said. “But ultimately, we’re giving it all we got right now.”