In early May, Denny Hamlin and fiancée Jordan Fish surprised fans with a heartwarming pregnancy announcement via an Instagram video featuring tiny blue Air Jordan sneakers, a creative way to reveal their baby’s gender and Jordan’s sneaker obsession. The reveal came just as the NASCAR Cup Series was heading west, setting the stage for a thrilling spring as Hamlin balanced the joys of expecting a son with his demanding race schedule.

As June unfolded, the couple faced an unexpected twist, as Jordan had gone nearly 2 weeks past her initial due date, igniting a mild baby-watch frenzy. During this time, Hamlin raced at Michigan International Speedway, clinching his third win of the season despite being mentally checked out, ready to dash home if contractions hit. For the Mexico City weekend, Hamlin made it clear that he would not board the flight unless Jordan had already delivered, “I said from the very beginning, if she hasn’t had it by the time I need to leave for Mexico, then I’m not going to go to Mexico. I think that’s the proper thing to do.” But the timing had been just short of perfect.

Hamlin family welcomes baby boy after lengthy labor and racing calendar juggle

As their son finally arrived on June 11th, Hamlin promptly withdrew from the historic NASCAR’s first international points event since 1958, to remain by his family’s side. In a recent episode of his podcast ‘Actions Detrimental,’ Hamlin explained the nuances of the special day when the family got a new member after weeks of anticipation. “I mean, trust me, we didn’t plan this to happen during Mexico City week, nor on the 11th,” said Hamlin. “But when she went to the doctor on Tuesday, that was the 10th. They said, ‘ok, you need to leave here and just go to the hospital.’”

The arrival was sudden, but so was the excitement as his two daughters, Taylor and Molly, had been eagerly awaiting the birth of their sibling. “That’s, ‘do not pass go, do not collect $200, just go to the hospital,’ and we’re looking and then we’re like, that’s the 10th and ‘ok, yeah, we’re ready, let’s do this. This schedule kind of works out. I can still go on and do my thing this weekend,” continued Hamlin.

“So, we went there and it seemed as though they weren’t in a super big hurry when we got there, and we’re looking at the clock and at the time we kind of get all settled in. It’s 4 hours until the 11th, and we’re thinking, ‘it would be kind of cool to have a June 11th baby.’” But what Hamlin did not realize was that the baby boy would be born on a very special day, making it a full-circle moment for Hamlin in his racing career. “I didn’t realize my first Cup win came on June 11th, at Pocono, I didn’t realize that’s how I saw this dad on NASCAR and Prime was like, ‘Holy cr–, same birthday as Jameson’s.’”

On the same day in 2006, Denny Hamlin broke through with his first-ever NASCAR Cup Series victory at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. Starting from the pole, he led the most laps in a commanding performance at Tricky Triangle, overcoming fierce competition to claim the checkered flag in the Pocono 500. Two decades later, the milestone also turned into a personal family celebration worth remembering, but with a lengthy and tense labor for Jordan.

“The pushing for Molly, the pushing for Taylor was so much shorter when I say so much, a few minutes here and there for especially, Molly, but this was a long, hard labor for Jordan, and yeah, it happened in the afternoon,” recalled Hamlin. “It started in the morning of the 11th and went all the way to the afternoon before the little bugger came out finally. But he didn’t get a name till 3 days later. Like we’re leaving the hospital, and they’re like, ‘alright, you got to give us a name.’”

The name, ‘Jameson Drew Hamlin,’ was a meaningful tribute to the people who shaped Hamlin’s path in racing. Denny Hamlin, whose real name is James Dennis Alan, thought ‘Jeameson’ naturally meant ‘James’s son,’ reflecting his family line. They added ‘Drew’ as a subtle nod to the initials ‘JD,’ honoring both J.D. Gibbs, his late mentor, and Joe Gibbs Racing’s co-founder, and Jim Dean, the late-model car owner who first gave him a shot in competitive racing.

Linking Jameson to the very roots of Hamlin’s journey in motorsports, the Joe Gibbs Racing star and 23XI Racing co-owner will look forward to embracing a future of building his name’s legacy in racing with his fatherhood duties in line, along with an exceptional Cup Series resume.

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Hamlin’s strong return falls just short of Pocono victory

After a week away from the track due to the birth of his son, Hamlin made a powerful return at Pocono Raceway for the Great American Getaway 400. Starting from pole position in the #11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry, the 7-time Pocono winner looked poised for another dominant run. He led the first 32 laps and claimed victory in Stage 1, but a late-race caution and fuel strategy twist shifted the outcome. Despite his efforts, Hamlin settled for a 2nd place finish behind teammate Chase Briscoe, who executed a bold pit strategy.

Briscoe, driving JGR’s #19 car, made a short pit stop on Lap 119 without refueling completely, giving him a 3-second edge over Hamlin. The latter pitted a lap later and quickly overtook Chris Buescher, narrowing the gap. However, a spin by the Mexico Cup race winner, Shane van Gisbergen, brought out a caution on Lap 124, putting Briscoe in a tough spot with a fuel situation. On the ensuing restart, Chase Briscoe capitalized while Hamlin got shuffled, unable to mount a final pass.

“I tried the best I could to make runs at him,” said Hamlin. “I’d back off, cool everything down, try to make another run, and as soon as I’d get within one or two car lengths, it would just heat the tires up, and then I couldn’t make a move on him. Truthfully, I thought he’d run out of gas. But we just were the next best on our strategy, which I thought was the right strategy. We just got a little unlucky.”

But with momentum still on his side, Hamlin heads to EchoPark Speedway, sitting 3rd in the regular-season standings. “Every week, we’re battling for a win,” he added. “Things are going really, really good right now. I’m happy with the way our team is performing. Everything’s clicking.” And with the birth of his son, the excitement would be on the roof if he manages to win another race after a tough month of baby watch.