Denny Hamlin has confirmed his role in the evident decision to delay suspending certain pit-crew members so his Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) team could keep them for the New Hampshire race on Sunday, September 21. He argued that the rules and the track's layout meant losing crew members at this moment would hurt track position more than in later races.JGR suspended two crew members, Austin Maloney (front tire changer) and Joel Bouagnon (jackman), for a safety violation after Hamlin’s No. 11 car lost a right-front wheel at Bristol. NASCAR issued a two-race suspension. JGR then used a rule that allows deferral of non-behavioral penalties by one week.When asked about the same, Hamlin explained the reasons for the plan to keep the crew members' suspension for the upcoming Round of 12 races at Kansas and Charlotte Roval. Denny Hamlin told Bob Pockrass:"I think it was an obvious decision simply because you know pit stops are not as crucial at the Roval as what is it what they would be here or Kansas here because of track position. You're going to get a much larger field spread at Roval. You're typically going to pit under green there so a stop that's a second slower is not going to be as detrimental. So it just makes sense with the rules that were given to defer one week."Hamlin also discussed the impact of crew changes and remained optimistic that the results could still be positive despite the changes."Certainly not having the same guys that we've always had will have some sort of an impact but I mean you know you never know it could be just as good," he added.Hamlin's No. 11 Toyota made contact with A.J. Allmendinger on lap 384, which caused him to lose a right-front wheel. He received a two-lap penalty and ultimately finished 31st, five laps down.Hamlin still leads the NASCAR Cup drivers in wins and points (26) above the cutline ahead of Sunday's Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire."I really look forward to going" - Denny Hamlin on New Hampshire's 'unmatched' racingDenny Hamlin posted a lap time of 29.409 seconds and will start in ninth position for the first race of the Round of 12 at the 1.06-mile oval in New Hampshire. The 44-year-old has the best average finish (9.9) at 'Magic Mile' among all active NASCAR Cup drivers in 31 career starts."It's a track that I really look forward to going to. We only get to go there once, but the racing is unmatched," Denny Hamlin said (via NHMS.com).However, Hamlin's last of three wins at the track came in 2017, which was the last season the New England oval hosted a NASCAR Cup playoff race.