Deny Hamlin, a experienced driver from Joe Gibbs Racing, had a string of bad luck during the recent race in Phoenix. Despite having one of the most impressive cars on the grid, he was unable to deliver a convincing performance. Although he started the season strong by winning the LA Clash, his performance plummeted during the Daytona 500 and has been on a downward trend ever since.
During the race in Phoenix, Hamlin started from the pole position and led for over 67 laps. However, with only 100 laps remaining, he found himself in a fierce battle for the lead with a driver from his own team, representing Hamlin’s 23XI Racing team. In his eagerness to take the lead, Hamlin pushed his car beyond the limits, resulting in a loss of control and spinning into the field. He openly admitted that it was his own mistake that led to this unfortunate incident.
Despite this setback, Hamlin managed to make a remarkable recovery and secure a top-10 finish. This performance also marked a significant improvement for Toyota, as all Joe Gibbs Racing cars, including Reddick, led laps during the race. This shows the progress they have made after a disappointing start to the season.
The race in Phoenix was the first event of the 2024 season Cup to feature the new Next-Gen car aerodynamic package, which is in development. Drivers had 55 minutes of practice time to test the package, but many were dissatisfied with the results. The package did not effectively solve the traffic issues on the short track, as expected.
Sin embargo, Hamlin tuvo algunos comentarios positivos sobre el nuevo paquete después de la carrera. Aunque reconoció que no era una solución perfecta, creía que era una mejora en comparación con el paquete anterior. Hamlin instó al órgano rector a implementar algunos cambios adicionales para resolver el problema de forma permanente.
En caso de que te lo hayas perdido, la actuación de Deny Hamlin durante la carrera fue totalmente culpa suya. A pesar de liderar durante 68 vueltas, terminó en el puesto 11. Sin embargo, su capacidad para recuperarse y asegurar un puesto en el top-10 mostró el progreso realizado por Toyota y Joe Gibbs Racing. La carrera en Phoenix también presentó el nuevo paquete aerodinámico del coche Next-Gen, que recibió críticas mixtas por parte de los pilotos. Hamlin expresó su creencia de que se necesitan ajustes adicionales para resolver los problemas continuos de tráfico en pistas cortas.
