Denny Hamlin enters the 2026 NASCAR Chase in the position he has wanted: the favorite.
The Joe Gibbs Racing driver finished the regular season with four wins, 14 top-five finishes, 17 top-10s, and an impressive 880 laps led. He also carries a 25-point advantage over Ryan Blaney into the 10-race championship fight.
Yet for Hamlin, the biggest challenge may not be finding something new. It may be doing exactly what he has already been doing.
Hamlin sees no weakness in Chase schedule
Speaking in a SiriusXM NASCAR Radio interview, Hamlin pushed back against the idea that there are certain Chase tracks where his team could be vulnerable.
“I don’t think that, there’s any weaknesses in the Chase tracks for us. I feel good about the knowledge that we’ve got on all these tracks. When I think about these ten tracks in particular, we’ve had really strong runs at them, at all of them in the last year.”
That confidence is important because Hamlin has never won the Cup Series championship despite reaching the championship battle multiple times. The 2026 season could arguably represent his strongest opportunity yet, with the 45-year-old entering as the regular-season points leader.
Hamlin believes recent results give his team enough information to attack the entire Chase.
“It’s not like we were good five years ago at, let’s say, Martinsville or Homestead. We’ve been good at all of them within the last year.”
That is the key difference for Hamlin.
He is not relying on old notebooks or past success. He believes the №11 team already knows what works at the tracks that will decide the championship.
Also Read:: Is Denny Hamlin Really the Driver to Beat For the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Title?
The No.11 team doesn’t have “to change anything”
That might be the key to Hamlin’s confidence.
While other drivers are talking about areas where they need to improve before the Chase, Hamlin believes his team does not need a major transformation.
“I’ve got enough knowledge. I’ve got enough good notes that we just need to go out there and do what we’ve been doing. We don’t have to change anything if we want to be champions this year.”
The Chase opens at Darlington on September 6, with Hamlin holding the top seed and a 25-point cushion over Blaney. NASCAR’s own analysis lists Darlington, Bristol, Martinsville, Kansas, and Homestead among Hamlin’s strongest Chase tracks.
But there is also no room for complacency. Under the new format, all 16 drivers remain in championship contention for the entire 10-race stretch, with the driver accumulating the most points becoming champion.
Hamlin has put himself in the best possible position. Now he believes the formula is straightforward: don’t overthink it, don’t reinvent the car, and don’t give away points.
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