Last weekend, NASCAR raced at the Martinsville Speedway, and in the O’Reilly’s Auto Parts Series, there was a new face. Driving the JR Motorsports #9 car was CARS Tour veteran Lee Pulliam, who debuted at the NASCAR O’Reilly Series. His participation came at the behest of Dale Earnhardt Jr., who helped Pulliam deliver an exceptional performance. Junior has always been credited for his work to help NASCAR’s short-track scene; once again, it was on display, and it led to Denny Hamlin giving the legend his flowers for promoting drivers like Pulliam.

Hamlin praises Dale Jr for his efforts promoting short track racers

Truthfully, bringing in Pulliam was a massive gamble as he had retired from the sport due to the rising costs. He returned to racing in 2025, but in a limited capacity.

However, Dale Earnhardt Jr. gave Pulliam the chance to race in his car at Martinsville, and Pulliam delivered a 5th-place finish, which is exceptional.

“I can’t hear it enough, what Dale does for the local short track community,” said Hamlin on the Actions Detrimental podcast. “Just giving these guys opportunities from the local asphalt short track ranks. It’s where Josh got his opportunity, Carson got his opportunity. It’s really good to see.”

The short track racing scene is a field of untapped potential with drivers like Carson Hocevar and Josh Berry coming through the ranks and making a name for themselves in NASCAR. Aged 37, Pulliam could be the latest name added to the list, all thanks to Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Pulliam admitted, “What a dream come true to drive for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Man, the whole experience has been pretty… pretty special for me. Something I’ve wanted to do my entire life. And just thankful for everybody who led to this moment. And I hope I made your fans proud leading all those laps. That was super cool, and driving away. Just wish I could have got going on restarts a little better. But if we ever get another chance to do this, I’ll learn from my mistakes and just come back stronger.”

While his finish was impressive, there was also a major wreck caused by him. But Hamlin put that down to his inexperience racing in the O’Reilly Series.

Denny Hamlin analyzed how Pulliam’s race played out

Although Pulliam finished 5th at Martinsville, there were a lot of things that did not go in his favor. There was a botched restart that triggered a big pile-up and a subsequent red flag, which Pulliam addressed in his post-race interviews.

However, Hamlin was quick to come to Pulliam’s rescue by mentioning his restart in Martinsville as an example of how these are common occurrences in NASCAR.

“I saw his first restart. Rich coming from me after the Cup restart. I was just watching Lee, and I knew that the inexperience of not knowing – now he knows what to do on restarts and what not. Just like what those cars need to get good restarts,” said Hamlin. “Keep the brakes warm, those things take a few laps to kind of get your bearings about you. Usually, your fast lap after a restart is lap 3-4, somewhere in that range. You got to keep the heat in it, specially at that track.”

Getting noticed by Hamlin is certainly an indication of how good Pulliam was in Martinsville. While there is no indication whether he will again race on the JR Motorsports team, it is clear that if called upon, Pulliam can put in a great performance.