On Sunday, at Nashville Superspeedway, Denny Hamlin is slated to make his monumental 700th NASCAR Cup Series start. However, this may not happen. His fiancée, Jordan Fish, is could possibly go into labor with Denny’s son on race day. Hamlin said that there was an eight-hour window, or there about, that would make it impossible for him to both be there for the birth of his son and make his 700th start.
With that said, Denny Hamlin has opted to see the birth of his son over taking the green flag in Nashville if it came to it. A relief driver was tapped for Sunday’s race just in case. That relief driver is none other than Denny’s former teammate’s little brother, Ryan Truex. In the event that Hamlin can’t make it back for the drop of the green flag, Ryan Truex will pilot the number 11 Progressive Insurance Toyota on Sunday.
#NASCAR … Denny Hamlin will make his 700th career Cup start Sunday at Nashville … unless fiancée Jordan Fish goes into labor and he will return to North Carolina. She is due to give birth Sunday. pic.twitter.com/wprfaxKmo8
— Dustin Long (@dustinlong) May 31, 2025
Under NASCAR rules, the birth of a child is one of the excused absences drivers are allowed to miss a race. There’s no doubt that if Hamlin does not take the green on Sunday night at New Hampshire, he will be granted a Playoff waiver.
