Going into pits stops after a caution in Stage 2, Chris Gabehart told Denny Hamlin he was going to take four tires, but it would end up costing him. Hamlin lost multiple spots and it put the NASCAR veteran in a tough position.
On the day, Denny Hamlin has led 41 laps so far. The race is currently under a weather delay for rain and lightning. Hamlin had been racing for the lead with his teammate Christopher Bell.
However, coming out of the pit stops after John Hunter Nemechek wrecked, Hamlin took four tires. Bell took two, as did a handful of others. It cost Hamlin track position and warranted an apology from his crew chief.
“That was a no brainer 2 tire call,” Gabehart said, via Matt Weaver of Sportsnaut. “When you told me 10 volts, I panicked and stopped thinking about the s**t I should have been.”
At least he gave Hamlin a pep talk afterward.
The last few weeks have been less than ideal for the 11 team. Struggles from lacking speed to a blown engine to getting the bad end of the stick in the rain. If it can happen, it’s more or less happened to Hamlin in the last few races.
It appeared that Denny Hamlin would be bouncing back today. He won the pole and has the best pit stall, right at the end of pit lane. There is a lot of reasons why this should be a good race for Hamlin. That pit strategy did not help, though.
Denny Hamlin P6 under weather delay at Nashville
By the time the weather showed up in Stage 2, Denny Hamlin had made up some ground. He was P13 on the restart and when the caution came out due to lightning, he had moved himself up to P6.
Hamlin is also dealing with voltage issues. Possibly a bad alternator. So, that is something to keep in mind. As it stands right now, it hasn’t been much of a factor on his speed. Still, the veteran driver would like to have an easier race than one where he has to struggle.
When you get behind, you drive harder. At times, that can cause incidents and get drivers in trouble. Going harder and forcing the issue isn’t always the right move in stock car racing.
Denny Hamlin is very much in contention. He might be P6 but there is more than half of this race to still get through. With 163 laps to go once the race restarts, the 11 team has plenty of time to get back to the front and race for the win.
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