Tyler Reddick finally broke his 2025 drought, kicking off the 2026 season with a statement win and you’d think everyone at 23XI would be riding that high. Michael Jordan sure was. The NBA legend celebrated like he just won the Daytona 500, trophy in hand, soaking up every bit of Victory Lane glory. But for co-owner Denny Hamlin? Well… the vibe was a little different. Even in a moment built for celebration, Hamlin couldn’t shake the competitor inside him. And what he admitted afterward was surprisingly raw. And honestly, a little uncomfortable.

Denny Hamlin’s honest (and ugly) confession

Denny Hamlin didn’t sugarcoat it. Even as 23XI Racing celebrated a huge season-opening win with Tyler Reddick, Hamlin admitted something most team owners would never say out loud. Speaking with Wendy Venturini, he revealed,

“As a competitor, there’s a part of me that will always be disappointed when my team wins because that means I don’t. But that team’s going to be around a lot longer than me, and they’ll keep winning.”

And that’s where Hamlin’s reality gets complicated. As you guys very well know, he’s not just a co-owner of 23XI but also a full-time driver for Joe Gibbs Racing, meaning every 23XI win is, by definition, a race he didn’t win. Reddick’s Daytona 500 triumph was a breakthrough for the 23XI team, but for Hamlin, the JGR driver, it came on a day when everything that could go wrong behind the wheel did.

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Running inside the top 15 with a legitimate shot to climb further, Hamlin’s day unraveled after contact with teammate Christopher Bell near the exit of Turn 4 on Lap 192. Both cars snapped into the inside wall, ending their hopes and handing Hamlin a brutal 31st-place finish. So while one half of Hamlin’s world was celebrating in Victory Lane, the other half was limping back to the garage, frustrated and empty-handed.

It’s no wonder his emotions were all over the place. There was pride for his team, but also disappointment as a driver. Visible conflict as someone trying to balance two identities in the most competitive motorsport in America. But if Hamlin’s admission made anything clear, it’s this: winning as an owner doesn’t fully replace the hunger of winning as a driver.

And maybe, deep down, that fire is what keeps him climbing back into the car year after year.

Hamlin’s dual-role dilemma isn’t new

If Hamlin’s mixed emotions after Reddick’s Daytona 500 win felt familiar, that’s because this isn’t the first time his roles as owner and driver have collided in messy fashion. A prime example? The wild finish of the 2025 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway. If you remember, it was easily one of the most dramatic endings of the season.

With Toyota dominating the weekend, the brand looked primed to sweep the spoils. Instead, everything unraveled in the final moments. Heading into Turns 3 and 4, Hamlin, hunting the win in his No. 11, raced his own 23XI Racing driver, Bubba Wallace, aggressively, pushing him up the track and into the outside wall. That tiny moment of overdrive opened the door for Chase Elliott to slip underneath and steal the victory from both of them.

The aftermath stung on multiple levels. Hamlin didn’t win as a driver, and his team didn’t win as an owner. And Toyota (dominant all weekend) was left empty-handed. Bubba Wallace was visibly frustrated with him, saying some choice words for Denny Hamlin, “He’s a f****g d****e,” Wallace said over the radio.

Fans questioned whether Hamlin had just cost himself twice over. But Hamlin didn’t shy away from the controversy. On Actions Detrimental, he addressed the incident head-on, telling fans:

“I definitely won’t apologize for racing for the win. . . On Sunday, I am the driver. The person in the 11 car is the driver. That’s where the disconnect, I think, comes from, is that people expect me to be a different person, they expect me to be the guy with a 23XI shirt on when I’m in the 11 car, and that’s just not possible.”

Moments like Kansas and now Daytona prove the same truth: Denny Hamlin can juggle both identities, but he can’t merge them. And when the visor drops, only one of those identities survives. And we all know which one that is.