Winning 51 Cup Series races over 17 full seasons with Joe Gibbs Racing, and uplifting the sport of stock car racing to great heights by the virtue of his podcast, Denny Hamlin is perhaps one of the future NASCAR Hall of Famers. His victories include wins at the Coca-Cola 600, Daytona 500, and even the crown-jewel race of the Southern 500 in 2010, 2017, and 2021. Despite all the aforementioned achievements, Denny Hamlin still lacks that one title for his resume that he so earnestly craves.

And that is a Cup Series championship. The 7-time Pocono winner is 42 and will probably be driving the #11 Toyota for about 7-8 years more. Hence, he is not ready to leave any stone unturned to unravel his title-winning chances this year. The 23XI Racing part-owner is all set to do whatever he can in order to bag that elusive win this year, even if that forced him to usurp Chase Elliott‘s Mickey Mouse throne.

Denny Hamlin follows the words of the Minnesota Vikings quarterback

When Chase Elliott won at Pocono last year, people called it a Mickey Mouse win. And that was solely because NASCAR disqualified both Denny Hamlin, who finished first, and Kyle Busch, who finished second as their cars failed the post-race inspection. Hence, Chase Elliott got pushed up to the winner’s seat, ousting both Hamlin and Busch out of contention.

For those who have been acquainted with the world of competitive sports for a fairly short period, a Mickey Mouse win is a win that is given to an athlete who didn’t have to put any effort into achieving the victory. In other words, it is an undeserving win. And if Denny Hamlin wins this year at Phoenix, fans might address his win as a Mickey Mouse win.

In a recent episode of Actions Detrimental, co-host and Hamlin’s longtime friend Jared Allen raised the same concern and said, “If you were to win a championship this year, everybody say, oh it doesn’t matter; it’s Mickey Mouse, blah, blah, blah”

Denny said that it is because of the hate of the fans that he will prove them wrong. The Tampa native admitted, “That’s why I love Kirk Cousins when he says if they saw me walking on water because they said I couldn’t swim.”

Needless to say, Denny Hamlin is still in full control of the villain arc that he has embraced. And he is not ready to let go. Meanwhile, despite being a non-playoff driver, fans are expecting Chase Elliott to seal the deal at the ROVAL.

Watch this story: Denny Hamlin Signs New Contract with Joe Gibbs Racing Amid His Career Woes

Obliterating fan favoritism, renowned journalist dissed Chase Elliott’s chances of winning

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In his 20 starts at the 1.5-mile road course, Elliott has 10 top-5 finishes, besides three top-10s and a win back in 2020. Moreover, Chase Elliott has unparalleled driving prowess when it comes to NASCAR’s road courses. Hence, a lot of anticipation regarding his performance this week is slithering down the alleys of NASCAR.

However, The Athletic’s Jeff Gluck denied siding with the 27-year-old driver. According to him, Chase Elliott has not seen the face of victory at road courses driving the next-gen cars. He said, “No, he shouldn’t be the favorite… Elliott is still running well on road courses – he leads all drivers in top-five finishes in the Next Gen car on those type of tracks – but he’s also 0-for-11 when it comes to winning.”

“That’s not saying Elliott can’t win, but I would think Tyler Reddick, William Byron or perhaps even Michael McDowell should be ahead of Elliott in the odds,” he added.

However, veteran journalist Jordan Bianchi did not agree. It is true that the 2020 Cup Series Champion has not been up to his usual standards lately, but his finishes have gotten better over the course of the last few races. Bianchi said, “Elliott finished second at Indy in August and he comes into the Roval looking more like his usual self than he has in some time with six top 10s in the past eight races.”

He continued, “So him winning on Sunday to snap a winless drought that’s now reached a year wouldn’t be all that surprising.”

Do you think Chase Elliott can rebound from his winless streak and regain his lost momentum from last year and the years prior to that? Do let us know in the comments below!

Denny Hamlin Takes a Mean Jab At His Championship Drought As NASCAR Insider Hopes to “Eventually Get it Right”