44-YO Denny Hamlin enters NASCAR Round of 8 with a notable roster adjustment for Las Vegas

Denny Hamlin will enter the Round of 8 with his full pit crew restored after a turbulent few weeks that tested both his patience and Joe Gibbs Racing’s squad depth. The 44-year-old will have his regular front-tire changer, Austin Maloney, and jackman, Joel Bouagnon, back on the No. 11 Toyota roster as the Cup Series heads to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the next playoff race.

The right-front wheel detached on Lap 385 of the Bristol Night race, just 18 laps after Hamlin’s final pit stop, forcing him to limp back to pit road and dropping him several laps down. The incident led NASCAR to issue two-race suspensions to Maloney and Bouagnon, but Joe Gibbs Racing opted to defer the penalty under the 2025 rule allowing temporary delays.

That meant Hamlin’s full crew remained intact for New Hampshire before the suspensions took effect at Kansas and Charlotte Roval. Ahead of the South Point 400, FOX Sports journalist Bob Pockrass reported that the No. 11 crew changes were the only ones among all Round of 8 drivers.

Bob Pockrass

@bobpockrass

Checked the rosters of the eight Cup drivers in the Round of 8 and only change from Charlotte is Denny Hamlin now has his jackman and front changer back after their two-race suspension for the wheel coming off at Bristol.

While fans did not like it, the deferral system prevents teams from using appeals as a scheduling tool. Under the previous structure, organizations could file a $5,000 appeal simply to postpone a suspension for convenience, then withdraw it later. The updated process streamlines that approach and reduces unnecessary bureaucracy.

After his 31st-place finish at Bristol, Denny Hamlin bounced back to 12th at New Hampshire with his regular crew still on duty. Maloney and Bouagnon then sat out the Kansas and Roval rounds, where his performance reflected both the strain of missing key personnel.

NASCAR Cup Series driver Denny Hamlin (11) at the Bank of America Roval 400. Source: Imagn

The No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota led most laps at Kansas. However, a costly mistake by the substitute jackman on the final pit stop turned a potential victory into a second-place finish. Hamlin came in the lead and exited pit road in sixth. The Roval race proved even tougher as he finished 23rd.

Still, his results have kept him in the title hunt. With five wins this season and the top seed in the Round of 8, Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 team are in their strongest title bid in years.

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Kevin Harvick on Denny Hamlin's Round of 12: "Three weeks in a row we’ve seen Hamlin in the middle of the story"

Denny Hamlin (R) and Ross Chastain after the Bank of America ROVAL 400. Source: Getty

Denny Hamlin has been at the center of many storylines in the postseason. In three consecutive playoff weekends, the veteran found himself involved in key incidents that shaped not only his own run but others around him.

At Bristol, tensions flared within Joe Gibbs Racing when his non-playoff teammate Ty Gibbs made contact, fighting for 11th place. Hamlin sent Gibbs’ No. 54 into the wall, ending his race. The following week at Kansas, controversy struck again.

Hamlin’s 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace was leading on the final restart when contact from the No. 11 car pushed him into the wall. It opened the door for Chase Elliott, who went past both on the final corner to take victory. The outcome proved devastating for Wallace, who would later be eliminated from the playoffs.

Then came the Roval, where the chaos continued. Ross Chastain bumped into Hamlin in a last-ditch move for position on the final corner. Both spun out, finishing in reverse, as Chastain went out of the playoffs by one point. Veteran analyst Kevin Harvick summed it up on the Happy Hour podcast:

“I think that three weeks in a row we’ve seen Hamlin in the middle of the story. He wasn’t even trying to be, but now he’s in the middle of the story again because, was he gonna pass the one (Ross Chastain) was he not gonna pass the one?” [30:50 onwards]

Heading to Las Vegas, Denny Hamlin will look to shift that narrative toward results. The 1.5-mile oval has long been one of his stronger circuits. He scored Toyota’s only Vegas win in the past six years during the 2021 fall race. Over his last six starts there, he’s finished outside the top 11 only once, maintaining a 12.78 average finish that ranks ninth-best all-time.