Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway

No. 11 Yahoo Toyota Camry XSE News and Notes

• HAMLIN AT DARLINGTON: Denny Hamlin made his first start for Joe Gibbs Racing at Darlington Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in November 2004. That day, he started 27th and raced his way to an eighth-place finish. Since then, he has posted four NASCAR Cup Series wins at Darlington and six Xfinity Series victories – both are most among active drivers. Hamlin’s 12 top-five finishes at the track are twice as many as the next best driver. Additionally, he leads all active drivers in top-10 finishes (16), laps led (978), average starting position (8.8), and average finishing position (8.4). Last September, Hamlin won the Xfinity Series race at Darlington and led a race-high 177 laps on the way to winning both stages of the Cup Series race before misfortune in the closing stage of the race left him with a 25th-place finish.
• KANSAS RECAP: Hamlin earned his fourth top-five finish of the season last Sunday at Kansas Speedway. After starting 14th, he methodically worked his way forward to win stage one. He found himself leading with less than 10 laps remaining before a caution slowed the race. The No. 11 team took two tires and Hamlin lined up as the leader for an overtime restart where he was ultimately shuffled back to fifth when the checkered flag waved.
• HISTORY OF THE 11: Throughout NASCAR history, the No. 11 has visited victory lane more than any other car number. Hamlin’s win at Dover was the 234th time a No. 11 car has won in the Cup Series. For Hamlin, his 54 victories driving the No. 11 are only one behind NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough for most on the illustrious list of drivers who have wheeled a No. 11 car to victory lane. That list includes Bobby Allison (3 wins), Mario Andretti (1 win), Buddy Baker (2 wins), Geoffrey Bodine (4 wins), Bill Elliott (6 wins), A.J. Foyt (1 win), Denny Hamlin (54 wins), Ned Jarrett (49 wins), Junior Johnson (11 wins), Parnelli Jones (1 win), Terry Labonte (4 wins), Darrell Waltrip (43 wins), and Cale Yarborough (55 wins).
• LEADING IN 2024: Hamlin is the only driver to lead in all 12 races this season. After leading a race-high 71 laps last weekend at Kansas, the No. 11 driver ranks second in the series with 606 laps led this season. Hamlin’s current streak of leading in 16 consecutive races is a personal best for the veteran driver. His previous best was leading 13 consecutive races during the 2021 season.
• FRONT RUNNER: Hamlin leads the Cup Series in multiple statistical categories according to Loop Data provided by NASCAR. He is currently the best in the series in average running position, fastest drivers late in a run, fastest on restarts, green flag speed, and laps in the top 15. Through 12 races, Hamlin has spent 135 more laps in the top 15 than the next closest competitor.
• JGR AT DARLINGTON: Joe Gibbs Racing owns 10 Cup Series wins at Darlington. In 124 combined starts at the track, the organization has tallied 36 top-five finishes, 69 top-10s, four pole awards, and 2,959 laps led. Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Erik Jones, Matt Kenseth, Bobby Labonte, and Martin Truex Jr. join Hamlin on the list of drivers who have won for JGR at Darlington.
• TUNE IN: Coverage of this weekend’s race at Darlington Raceway begins Sunday, May 12, at 3 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1, MRN Radio, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

Denny Hamlin, Driver of the No. 11 Yahoo Toyota Camry XSE

Why do you enjoy racing at Darlington so much?

“Darlington is one of our best racetracks, one of my best tracks. It’s the place where I got my very first Xfinity start way back in 2004. I just feel good at that track, and it seems like we’re at the heart of the season where most of the tracks we go to, we’re going to have a great shot to win.”

What makes Darlington so challenging?

“It’s such a changing racetrack in the sense of how it changes from practice to the race. Even throughout the race, the groove that you race in changes, and you have to adapt your style. I feel like that plays into my strong suit being able to adapt to different conditions and keeping up with the everchanging conditions.”

Hamlin NASCAR Cup Series Stats at Darlington Raceway

Starts		Wins		Top 5		Top 10		Poles		Laps Led		Avg. Start		Avg. Finish
23		4		12		16		1		978		8.8		8.4

Hamlin 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Season Stats

Starts		Wins		Top 5		Top 10		Poles		Laps Led		Avg. Start		Avg. Finish
12		3		4		5		1		606		11.2		13.4

Hamlin NASCAR Cup Series Career Stats

Starts		Wins		Top 5		Top 10		Poles		Laps Led		Avg. Start		Avg. Finish
662		54		226		345		41		14,958		11.9		13.2

-JGR-