Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Freight Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing
Race Info:
Race: Go Bowling 400
Date/Time: May 13/7:30 PM ET
Distance: 267 Laps/400.5 Miles
Track Length: 1.5 mile
Track Shape: Tri-oval
Banking: Turns: 17-20°; Straights: 5-11°
2016 Winner: Kyle Busch
Express Notes:
Press Kit: Download the 2017 FedEx Racing press materials at www.fedexracing.com/presskit, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Mike Wheeler and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights, statistics and 2017 crew roster.
Talladega Recap: Denny Hamlin finished 11th in the #11 FedEx Express Toyota after leading 43 laps in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway won by Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Hamlin started 11th and fell back to 33rd after just two laps when he had a close call while running the low line racing four-wide on the high banked oval. Hamlin decided to stay out of trouble and run at the back of the field for the rest of Stage 1 after the FedEx car developed a vibration, forcing the team to pit three laps prior to the end of the Stage. The forced strategy paid dividends as the early stop gave Hamlin the lead for the start of the Stage 2. Utilizing clean air and some aggressive driving, Hamlin led 41 laps and won Stage 2 picking up 10 bonus points in the process. As the final Stage progressed, Hamlin raced among the leaders, adding two more laps at the point. But as the laps clicked, the racing intensity picked up and Hamlin narrowly missed a multi-car accident that allowed him to move up to second with 15 laps remaining. Hamlin and teammate Kyle Busch raced hard for the lead at the restart as the field behind them lined up and chased them down, Hamlin was eventually caught in a four-wide situation that shuffled the FedEx car back to ninth. A spin with two laps to go trapped Hamlin in ninth for the green-white-checker restart, Hamlin fought hard but lost two spots in the scramble to the checkered flag resulting in the 11th place finish. Hamlin remains 11th in the overall NASCAR standings following the race at Talladega.
Kansas Preview: The Series gears up for its first Saturday night race of the season at the 1.5-mile Kansas Speedway. In 17 starts at the intermediate track, Denny has notched four top-five and five top-10 finishes, scoring his first win at Kansas in 2012. After starting third for last year’s spring race at Kansas, a late-race crash relegated Hamlin to a 37th-place finish.
Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares: This season, FedEx is tying the performance of the #11 FedEx Toyota on the track to its efforts to improve road safety through a new program, Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares, by donating $111 for each lap Hamlin leads and $11,000 for each race victory to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit working to protect kids on the road, at home and at play. FedEx will also contribute $111,000 to Safe Kids if the #11 team wins the 2017 NASCAR championship.
Hamlin led 43 laps during Sunday’s race at Talladega, adding $4,773 to the total donation amount to Safe Kids. To date, FedEx has donated $15,540 to Safe Kids through the Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares program. Fans can track the total amount donated to date from the Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares program on the homepage of FedExRacing.com.
Hamlin Statistics:
Track: Kansas Speedway
Races: 17
Wins: 1
Top-5: 4
Top-10: 5
Poles: 0
Average Start: 13.5
Average Finish: 16.6
Laps Led: 69
Hamlin Conversation – KANSAS:
After an action-packed weekend in Talladega, what can we expect at Kansas?
“You can always expect things to get crazy at Talladega, but I’d say our #11 FedEx team had a good weekend there – just wish we had had more time to get to the front in the final laps. Obviously, night racing at Kansas this weekend will get interesting, too, because you never know how the cars will handle once the sun goes down.”
West Fargo, N.D. FedEx Freight Team Along for the Ride at Kansas: The West Fargo, North Dakota, FedEx Freight service center will be recognized by having its “FAR” code letters on the b-post of the #11 FedEx Freight Toyota this weekend at Kansas Speedway.
#11 FedEx Racing – 2017 Crew Roster
Crew Chief – Mike “Wheels” Wheeler
Car Chief – Leo Thorsen
Engineers – Justin Langdon, Sam McAuley
Shock Specialist – Drew Bible
Tire Specialist – Kerry Ferris
Mechanics – Tony Hamm, Scott Eldridge, Sean Kerlin
Spotter – Chris Lambert
Front Tire Changer: Dustin Necaise
Front Tire Carrier: Brandon Pegram
Rear Tire Changer: Mike Hicks
Rear Tire Carrier: Ben Fischbeck
Jack Man: Nate Bolling
Gas Man: Caleb Hurd
Transportation – Frank Hodel, Josh Collins
