TOYOTA RACING – Corey Heim and Denny Hamlin
NASCAR Cup Series Quotes
LEBANON, Tenn. (May 30, 2026) – 23XI Racing co-owner Denny Hamlin and Corey Heim were made available to the media on Saturday prior to NASCAR Cup Series practice at Nashville Superspeedway to talk about the news that Heim will be a full-time Cup Series driver for the team starting in 2027.
DENNY HAMLIN, Co-Owner, 23XI Racing
COREY HEIM, Driver for 23XI Racing this weekend and full-time starting in 2027
Tell us about some exciting news for 23XI Racing in 2027
HAMLIN: “As you have seen on a social post here recently, Corey Heim will officially be driving our third car this year. Obviously a really proud moment for him. I was just telling someone back there, the moment I got announced for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), it was back in Texas in 2005. It was a big moment as well. Very well deserved and for our company, generational talents only come along now and then. I probably have one, so I’m really excited about what he’s going to bring our team and the performance he’s going to bring and the work ethic is very, very good. Looking forward to working with him in the future.”
You are a proven winner. What does this moment mean for your career?
HEIM: “It means the world to me. I’ve been a part of 23XI Racing for a couple years now. I firmly believe as a driver that you just have to have the right people around you to be able to succeed. Driving in NASCAR the last three or four years in the trucks I feel like I was with the right people and did the right things, so I’m looking forward to having the right group around me to succeed. I’ve only started 10 races with 23XI Racing, but I really feel like it’s really my home and I’ve been treated right. Obviously, their equipment speaks for himself. So thankful for everyone there, Denny (Hamlin), MJ (Michael Jordan), Toyota, the Tricon guys. So thankful for those guys as well to give me the pathway to this to the best of their ability. This is super exciting. This is something I’ve been sitting on for awhile and just means the world to me. I’ve always wanted to be a Cup driver ever since I was a little kid and to get that news out and start preparing with my 23XI Racing folks here it’s just super awesome.”
You backloaded Corey’s schedule for later in the year this year. After leaving Texas and showing what he’s shown, what are you trying to achieve over the course of these eight races remaining this year?
HAMLIN: “From a scheduling standpoint, a lot of it is just trying to get some of these racetracks that either he doesn’t have a lot of laps on or things like that. We felt like it was a good workload for our race team. We don’t have four fulltime teams, so we are pulling guys from the shop and things like that to field this fourth car so it’s harder. We don’t have to hire guys and then not. So it just worked out good in the sense that I thought it was a good enough sample size this year to allow them to feel confident when it goes into next year that he has enough reps on all types of tracks that he’s going to face next year. I think it worked out for us that way and he had some input on tracks that he would like to run as well.”
HEIM: For my side, I had a good chat with Dave Rogers (23XI Competition Director) the other week and he was telling me that this is a notebook year for you. Don’t be afraid to take these bigger risks and figure out how to do the hard things and make mistakes this year so next year you’re a better prepared for things like that and learn lessons. Not that I’m trying to go out and find the limit, but I guess not knock the wall down by any means. But, that helped me feel more confident that I can take these bigger risks and figure it out. A lot of guys I feel like in their first couple of years in Cup or O’Reilly or Truck, they find out how to push the limit and this is a year I can do that. I’m also able to, as Denny said, these tougher racetracks and all some tracks I have more experience at to help me build off of that. Like this track is my third start here in Nashville and I’ve run Kansas a couple of times too. It’s a mixed bag of tracks I’ve run before and I can build off of them but also new tracks that I can help build that notebook for me.”
Can you tell us more about the patience and process behind the scenes to get to this point?
HAMLIN: “From my standpoint, he was extremely, extremely patient. In my mind it just shows my maturity that he has is well beyond his age. I think he shows it on the racetrack and obviously off the racetrack that I’m going to be with you guys long term, but got to wait a little bit. I do appreciate that, similar to Tyler Reddick, I wanted to get Tyler Reddick and I just wanted to get Corey. I just had to figure it out however it was going to work. At that time we don’t know whether there was going to be a limit on three charters or four charters and things like that. Now that it got finished and we know it can be only be three, then this is a decision we made and feel very optimistic about what he can bring to a team. It took a lot of patience and he was very patient with us but it will get to pay off in the long run.”
HEIM: “23XI Racing is a very structured race team in their preparation and just working with some truck teams and other teams along my route to 23XI Racing I just felt like the moment I prepared for my first race at Nashville in 2024 I just always felt like this is the most prepared race team I’ve ever worked with and it just felt like a home to me and everyone felt like they were very welcoming and motivated. When I ran my first race with these guys and their preparation was just top notch. I felt confident going into that race and everyone was firing on all cylinders. So to me, it was an easy decision to proceed to work with them for the long term.
What have you seen from Corey this year specifically that has given you further confidence in his ability?
HAMLIN: “One of the tough parts of his schedule is that he has to go out first in qualifying every time. It just has been bad luck. This is actually the first week where he doesn’t have to. He’s always up against it. Has very developmental pit crew and has to start in the back of the pack because of his draw and things like that. It’s always putting him behind the gun every time we send him to the racetrack and he still finds a way to make it up towards the front. That to me just shows me that when he’s fulltime and got all the resources he needs to succeed.”
HEIM: “I’m in the seat more than people would realize. I’ve been fortunate to do some wheelforce testing for Toyota this year. I’ve got some six of those, going some Truck racing and do some late model racing. It may not be as valuable as straight up cup starting, but it’s keeps me in the seat and keeps me prepared. I’ve got a very solid schedule so far regardless of only my 12 Cup races this year. It also gives me a little bit of an opportunity to kind of debrief a little longer every race. Guys who were rookies this year or last year, kind of wondering they had a fast turnaround to wonder what just happened. A lot of things happen in the race and you only have one or two days to debrief and soak it all in until we have to start preparing for the next one. This kind of every two or three weeks in between races schedule for me has given me a chance to kind of just think about what just happened and then gives me some extra time to prepare for the next one. Honestly, I was a little worried about being out of the seat as much as I am this year, but it was definitely just a thought that was going on in my head. But as I’ve gotten into the groove here it’s actually been healthy just to have that time and debrief and prepare over a longer period of time.”
Corey has been in the Toyota pipeline for a number of years. When was the moment the light bulb went off that you wanted to have him drive for 23XI?
HAMLIN: “It was before his historic season last year, it was 2023 or 2024 in that range, probably 2023. It’s been a long time. I knew that he had went through the Toyota pipeline and this is another great sign of the investment that Toyota puts into their drivers and their programs. From the dirt tracks to the CARS Tour and all the way up to the Cup Series. That’s what that pipeline is supposed to do as far as drivers coming up and he’s certainly going to be a success story again from that. It was many years ago and mostly it was just the racecraft in general, it wasn’t speed or finishes or anything like that. Very similar to Tyler in the sense that I know when his vehicle is in a certain position that’s a very vulnerable position and still finds a way out of it and makes a move and makes a pass. I know moves that are difficult to make and the great ones find ways to make them look easy when I know it’s not.”
Is it possible with today’s announcement that Corey’s 12 race schedule could be expanded further?
HAMLIN: “We’ve already planned that out and it’s hard to add some things. We obviously have tried to get him as many start in different vehicles, whether it is trucks or whatever we can. But the Cup schedule with the turnaround time makes it very difficult to just add another race. That part would be challenging. Doesn’t mean we aren’t going to try, but it will be challenging.”
Corey, how did you learn patience at such a young age?
HEIM: “I always felt like to go with my gut and tried to prioritize surrounding myself with good people. I think it’s very important in this sport to have people believe in your as well as people who want you to succeed. Ever since I’ve been with Toyota since 2020 in my first year I’ve always just felt so welcomed into that program and gotten along with everyone on that side, as well. I always just never felt like they were going to do me wrong or put me in a bad position. I always felt like they wanted me to succeed. So there was never any reason for me to go anywhere else, you know? I’ve always felt they’ve done everything in their power to put me in the best position in my career and then of course when I signed with 23XI Racing that prior to that it was the same feeling. As I mentioned earlier, I ran my first race for them two years ago here at Nashville, everyone in that building wanted me to succeed and they put me in the best position to do so. It just made too much sense to go anywhere else. Between Toyota and 23XI Racing I feel at home and I feel like everyone wants each other to succeed and everyone’s lifting each other up. Even on the bad days I feel like we can take it on the chin and move on.”
Denny, how much do you enjoy being a mentor for the young drivers?
HAMLIN: “It’s very interesting. Truthfully of the 23XI guys, Corey is the guy I’ve had the most conversations with, he asks me the most. Tyler’s probably second. And then it’s a very distant third and fourth from there. We interact a lot, we are in the back talking about if you fought this today or not. I think we have similar styles of what we want out of our racetracks. When I listen to maybe some struggles Corey has, or Tyler or Bubba and those guys, on a weekly basis I think the team’s advantage is I know what they are talking about. I say did you try this or try that, or, I challenge the crew chiefs I think you need to try this to fix that problem which has worked for us. It’s really a big advantage those guys have over there and it really is for me to listen to them and hear their feedback. It’s a good working relationship right now and Corey is someone that I communicate with regularly on a weekly basis.”
Corey, can you describe Denny as a teacher?
HEIM: “I feel like everything is transparent. It helps that 23XI Racing and JGR has a alliance so we don’t have to hide anything. Anytime I have questions Denny gives me a very elaborate and thorough answers. It helps he owns the team, but sometimes prior teammates, not current teammates, don’t seem to want to share information if it seems like an advantage to them. It’s just nice to know Denny as a competitor and my boss that he is able to still give me those thorough answers to help me out on a weekly basis. It’s one of the if not the best resources to have to continue my development and continue learning which also played into my decision to be here.”
What is it like to have a driver 22 years younger than you?
HAMLIN: “Holy cow. It’s so interesting because when I was his age I was still running limited late models. Seems like he’s been on this trajectory to be in this position for so long but he’s still far ahead of what I was at this point. It’s wild. I’ve been in the Cup Series pretty much since he was born. It’s wild that we still get to go out there and compete. It’s going to be fun next year to share the racetrack with him on a fulltime basis knowing that someone has been alive and seen pretty much all of your starts.”
When the lawsuit was settled and you talked about working with NASCAR. How has that been?
HAMLIN: “It’s really been good. I’ve had quite a bit of dialogue with Steve O’Donnell. They’ve allowed me to sit in on the new competition committee with Chad Knaus, Wally Brown, and Travis Geilser and a few others to make decisions on the next Superspeedway package and things like that. It’s been good, we’ve been working together and after the All-Star win I was talking with Ben Kennedy and talking with Steve O’Donnell and here’s where I think we can maybe get back to where we need to even as the winner, but I want to see the sport succeed. That’s what is going to be best for me in the long run. It’s been a really good working relationship and they’ve delivered on everything they promised us.”
Did you grow up being a Denny Hamlin fan?
HEIM: “I did. He was my first guy for sure. My dad is over there and can tell you. We just were actually looking at a picture from 2015 I was standing on the grid of the Coke 600 by his pit box with his stuff on. Just a full circle thing for me. I never had an aspirations to drive for Denny just because it didn’t exist at that point. Just looking back on it, you can’t make this stuff up, it’s pretty cool.”
Denny, what is your personal relationship with Nashville Superspeedway and what would it mean to get a guitar tomorrow?
HAMLIN: “I really, really want to win here pretty badly. So much I can tell that certain weekends people ask all the time do you ever get nervous? Not anymore, I’ve done it way too many times to get nervous. But on certain weekends where I really want to win I start getting a little nervous pre practice, but I’m thinking about things like, did I get my car right this week? There’s certain trends that I look at that might concern me. I end up getting caught up in the things sometimes I can’t control, worrying about the outcomes instead of the actual process. This is one of them, it’s a track where I only have so many chances to get a win here and I’ve been so close over the last few years. I love the racetrack and feel like it’s been a very raceable track over the years and since they’ve worked the resin in. I’m a little bit nervous going into the weekend.”
With the changes coming into the race, is there anything you are looking for beyond the SIM?
HAMLIN: “That’s truthfully what I’m worried about. If we had come back with the same tire and the same package as last year then I have no worries or concerns and know what I need to feel. It’s just that there was, at this racetrack, a big aerodynamic change and it was very big. Did I send the team down the right direction this week? We will find out shortly.”
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