Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Freight Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing
Race Info:
Race: First Data 500
Date/Time: Sunday, Oct. 28/2:30 p.m. ET
Race Distance: 500 Laps/263 Miles
Track Shape: Oval
Track Length: .526-Miles
Banking: 12 degrees
2017 Winner: Kyle Busch
Express Notes:
Kansas Recap: Denny Hamlin finished 14th in Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway after sustaining front-end damage early on in the #11 FedEx Office Toyota, collecting his 25th top-15 this season in the 400-mile event won by Chase Elliott. The FedEx Racing crew worked to remedy the damage, but the aerodynamic disadvantage was too much to overcome, and Hamlin found himself running mid-pack for the duration of the race. Following Sunday’s finish, Hamlin moved up one spot to 12th in the overall NASCAR point standings.
Martinsville Preview: With only four races remaining in the 2018 season, the Series returns to Martinsville for Sunday’s 500-lap event around the half-mile ‘Paperclip’. Hamlin is no stranger to the short track’s Victory Lane and has captured a career-best five wins at Martinsville in 25 total starts. He also boasts a career-best 12 top-five and18 top-10 finishes with 1,505 laps led around the narrow oval.
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. New for the 2018 season, the Denny Hamlin Foundation will also match the total donation to Safe Kids Worldwide.
After 32 total races this season, Hamlin has led 308 laps resulting in a $34,188 donation to Safe Kids Worldwide that will ultimately be matched by the Denny Hamlin Foundation. Fans can track the total amount donated to date from the Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares program on the homepage of fedexracing.com.
Press Kit: Download the 2018 FedEx Racing press materials at www.fedexracing.com/presskit, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Mike Wheeler and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights and statistics.
Hamlin Statistics:
Track: Martinsville Speedway
Races: 25
Wins: 5 (career best)
Poles: 3 (tied for career-best)
Top-5: 12 (career best)
Top-10: 18 (career best)
Laps Led: 1,505
Avg. Start: 9.4
Avg. Finish: 10.1
Hamlin Conversation – Martinsville:
“Our finish at Martinsville in the spring (12th) doesn’t reflect the speed we actually had, so I’m looking forward to improving upon that this weekend. Martinsville is obviously somewhere where this FedEx Racing team has had success, so I have no doubt that this is the place where we could go and get that win we’re continuing to work hard for.”
FedEx Freight’s Roanoke, Virginia, Service Center Along for the Ride at Martinsville: FedEx Freight recognizes the company’s Roanoke, Va. service center for being named the FY18 PSP Center of the Year by featuring the call letters “ROA” on the #11 FedEx Freight Camry this weekend at Martinsville. The Roanoke service center opened in 1997 and has more than 125 team members who are committed to making every FedEx experience outstanding.
