Joe Gibbs Gives Brutally Honest Verdict on Denny Hamlin’s 2026 Title Chances

The 2026 NASCAR Cup chase for the title hasn’t been kind to Denny Hamlin. He started the final round as the points leader, but after five rounds is 40 points behind Kyle Larson, as the defending champion’s 2.2 average has become too much for the veteran to handle.

JGR owner Joe Gibbs talked about his star driver Hamlin’s struggle to match the Hendrick Motorsports driver. He admitted that it’s a miracle that the No:11 is still P2 in the table, considering all the chaos he has been through and having a five-race winless streak.

Actually, I think where we are, I think we’re what, 40-something back, I think it’s pretty miraculous considering everything that’s happened in these first five races. So, everybody can kind of see you win a race, you have a day like Chase had today, you get 70-something points.

Joe Gibbs said after Las Vegas weekend.

But he can’t expect lady luck to continue delivering for him. Joe Gibbs asserted that Denny Hamlin needs to secure a race win soon to get back into the championship contention. The race win bonus points would be enough for him to secure the win.

I think that’s where we are with the 11. We need to win, and I think we’ll be right on top of it. We’ve got five races left. I only go off of the first five. It’s been wild, and I think the next five will be the same way.

Joe Gibbs added, as reported by 5Goats.

Joe Gibbs predicts more chaos in the chase

Later in the same conversation, the veteran team owner highlighted how the first half of the chase has been wild and chaotic. The starting spot hasn’t given the driver any advantage and the veteran feels the remaining races for championship would be same.

Yeah, I think you can see what’s happened in the first five races. It’s been kind of wild. You’ve seen people come from ninth and tenth to the front of the field. I think it’s going to be the same way for the next five races.

Joe Gibbs said.

Further talking about the point, the veteran asserted that the fans are going to get the shows they expect with the drama and that’s a big positive for NASCAR. Gibbs believes the chaos explains how challenging the whole sport it.

So, it’s going to be great for the fans, and I’m just hoping that we can get going…It shows you how hard our sport is. The 19 had a great day, and our other three cars all had issues. It’s just going to be chaotic. I think it’s going to be great for the fans.

Joe Gibbs added.

The comments from the veteran racer are on point and shows how challenging the whole sport has become with the Next-Gen car, alongside the new championship format. It would be interesting to see if 2026 will be year JGR ends their championship drought that’s started in 2020.

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