Denny Hamlin Set to Break Unwanted NASCAR Record His Business Partner Michael Jordan Won’t Be Proud Of

Published 11/10/2022, 6:30 AM EST

One of the greatest basketball players to play the game, and one of the greatest athletes that the world has seen – Michael Jordan brings a level of intensity, dedication, and performance to the table that not too many can match. People look up to Jordan, and among those people is his business partner and friend, Denny Hamlin.

Michael Jordan has a stellar list of achievements from his time competing in the NBA. He is 5th on a list composed of greats like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Kobe Bryant for most career points. Jordan also holds the record for most consecutive seasons where he scored the highest points; for 7 seasons, between 1986 and 1992.

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He also has the highest career scoring average, scoring 30.12 points per game – over a period of more than 1,000 NBA games, that is an unbelievable record. But it all goes to show the consistency of his performances, and just how good he was. His 6 NBA Championships stand proof of his credentials.

On the other hand, Hamlin is having a really tough time, only worsened by happenings in Martinsville. Hamlin qualified (and was the only one to do so) for the Championship 4 race in all 3 years between 2019 and 2021 – but he failed to win the Championship. This time around he couldn’t make that cut also.

Initially, it was believed that his trip to Phoenix was canceled as a result of Ross Chastain’s Hail Mary move. But Brad Keselowski’s disqualification post-race meant Chastain would have pipped Hamlin for the last spot regardless of whether he’d pulled that wall-hugging move or not.

Hamlin is currently at 48 race wins, only behind Junior Johnson (on 50) for an unenviable record – most race wins without a Championship win. Technically Denny could be considered to hold the record among full-time drivers since Junior Johnson never raced full-time.

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The 2023 season isn’t too far now. If Hamlin does manage to win the Championship next season, it’ll most likely come at the cost of holding this record to his name. But he won’t mind that; his eyes will be on the prize.

Denny Hamlin was left shocked by that move from Chastain

Hamlin’s chances for another try in the Championship 4 race dried up when Ross Chastain pulled off a move no one had ever had the courage to try.

With that knowledge, it must have been very difficult for Denny to digest that his Championship hopes had ended. But Denny still spoke highly of Chastain at the end of the race.

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He was asked “It was an unbelievable move that cost Denny a chance to go to his 5th Championship 4. Can you believe it came down that way?”
Denny said, “Yeah, I mean you gotta execute all day and we just didn’t control the race when we had control of it. Continued losing some spots. But that’s the way it is.”

“Thank Chris Gabeheart and the whole FedEx team for giving me a really fast car today. I mean it’s just unbelievable when I was out front. But couldn’t hang on to the pit road, congrats Christopher… It’s racing, it’s racing in Martinsville. It was a great move, brilliant! I mean certainly, great move when you have no other choice. When you have no choice it’s easy to do that but well-executed.”

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A chance in Phoenix would have capped off an otherwise decent season for the Joe Gibbs Racing driver. However, it wasn’t to be. 2023 is another chance for him, and he has shown he has the goods to make it through.

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Written by:

Abhay Tyagi is a Formula 1 Author at EssentiallySports. Although he has completed his undergrad in Law and Management, he has always been eager to venture into the exciting field of sports journalism. With a special affinity for Engineering and Speed, Abhay has always found the world of Formula 1 quite exhilarating.

Edited by:

Nizamul Haque Bhuyan

Denny Hamlin Set to Break Unwanted NASCAR Record His Business Partner Michael Jordan Won’t Be Proud Of

Denny Hamlin was left shocked by that move from Chastain

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