NASCAR Cup Series veteran Denny Hamlin revealed that he turned down an offer to compete in this past weekend’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Darlington Raceway during the most recent episode of his podcast.
Despite all his success in the top two divisions of NASCAR, Denny Hamlin is not widely known for success in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
In his over 20-year career racing in the NASCAR National Series, the future NASCAR Hall of Famer has never raced full-time in the Truck Series, with just 16 starts and two wins under his belt.
If you asked a NASCAR fan the last time Hamlin even made a start in the series, they would likely not remember, as he has not raced in the series in over a decade, having last made a start with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2013.
However, that could have changed this past weekend, as Hamlin revealed that he had the opportunity to drive the No. 5 Truck for TRICON Garage at Darlington Raceway.
Of course, this past weekend, that truck found its way to victory lane with TRICON Garage driver Corey Heim behind the wheel. During his post-race interview, Heim mentioned that he, “Didn’t know I was racing this race till three weeks ago.”
Though most didn’t know the story behind this overlooked comment, during the latest episode of Actions Detrimental, Hamlin cleared the air, saying that his decision to step aside was why TRICON gave 23XI Racing prospect the seat for this race.
“It’s because I declined that ride. Damn it.” — Denny Hamlin
So, why did Hamlin opt out of his return to the Truck Series at a track he has seen so much success at?
Well, as he put it, the timing just wasn’t right, with the veteran driving somewhat reluctantly saying, “it wasn’t good timing for me.”
Hamlin also mentioned that plans for the No. 5 truck, which is one of two full-time trucks at TRICON that have a rotating door of drivers, were coming together late in the off-season, and he “wanted them to work all those kinks out.”
Though some fans are disappointed that Hamlin did not race in the Truck Series race this past weekend, most agree that Heim getting the seat was the right move.
This race gave fans another chance to see the 23-year-old phenom go head-to-head with the best NASCAR has to offer, including Toyota teammate Christopher Bell and multiple-time Cup Series winner Ross Chastain.
In the end, it was Chastain that Heim had to battle with, making a bold move in the final turn of the last lap to take home the win.
Heim’s outing at Darlington earned nothing but praise from Hamlin, with the 23XI Racing boss saying, “If he can’t win in it, then that truck ain’t good enough on that weekend. He’s gonna get the most out of the speed of the vehicle he’s in.”
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