"One of the upper echelon": Denny Hamlin backs Chase Briscoe as a final four contender

Denny Hamlin commented on his teammate Chase Briscoe's chances of being a final four contender. Briscoe, who won the first race of the playoffs at Darlington, has impressed in his first season with JGR as the #19 driver.

Two wins and nine top 5 finishes have led him to an assured spot in the Round of 12 of the playoffs. And while JGR might've started as an underdog or a 'sleeper team' at the beginning of the season, Denny Hamlin argues otherwise now.

During the recent episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin was asked whether Briscoe was 'a threat' for the final four this season.

"I do. I think that they have all the tools available to them. Chase Briscoe is certainly capable enough so I don't think it's necessarily a sleeper team anymore. I think this is a team that certainly you could look at and say, 'It's one of the upper echelon.'

"Add it to the top four or five that have been fastest all year. You could probably add that onto that," Denny Hamlin answered.

Denny Hamlin further commented on how Chase Briscoe recovered from practice pace to dominate the race by leading over 300 laps. The JGR veteran credited 'overnight adjustments' for the turnaround of the #19 team at Darlington.

Hamlin claimed that the #19 team, as well as crew chief James Small, deserved credit for 'clicking on all cylinders.' He mentioned that Small and Briscoe were in a good spot and were finally beginning to understand each other and their needs.

Having said that, Denny Hamlin pointed to a big factor that ended up in Chase Briscoe dominating Darlington.

"I think the clean air is the biggest thing by far is it can just completely change your race car when you have nobody out in front of you versus, you know, just putting one car, when I was in second behind him, I'm like, 'Holy crap, man!' Couldn't believe the difference of, whether I was directly behind him or not," he described.

Hamlin added that it was 'crazy' how turbulent the air was on the track.

Denny Hamlin explains how Chase Briscoe passed him at Darlington

Chase Briscoe started the Darlington playoff race one spot behind his pole-sitting teammate Denny Hamlin. However, the #19 team took the lead from the veteran, something the #11 driver explained on Actions Detrimental.

Hamlin revealed that on the initial start, he wanted Tyler Reddick, who started in fourth, to know what his job was and understand. However, as Hamlin looked back, Reddick was nowhere close to his rear bumper.

"The #19 gets the jump, we battle side-by-side, and unfortunately, the way the timing marks work, when a caution is thrown, it reverts back to the previous scoring loop that your car crossed, and the #19 was ahead of me," Hamlin explained

Hamlin emphasized the importance of the initial start, as once a driver gets out in the front at Darlington, it becomes an advantage. Denny Hamlin mentioned that his teammate controlled the beginning, and by the time it came to pit stops, Briscoe had 'a tremendous advantage.'

Hamlin remarked that Darlington has become a qualifying race that involves execution on pit road, nothing more.