Denny Hamlin heads into the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series campaign with a dramatically different dynamic than he had the previous six years.
Joe Gibbs Racing announced on Nov. 22 that veteran crew chief Chris Gabehart, who had overseen the No. 11 team since 2019, had received a promotion to competition director at the organization. Ty Gibbs’ crew chief Chris Gayle was named his replacement.
That same day the three-time Daytona 500 champ met with the media ahead of the annual awards banquet. Reporters unsurprisingly peppered him with questions about the departure of Gabehart, including veteran journalist Claire B. Lang, who asked how he learned about the decision.
“I got called into another six o’clock meeting,” Hamlin said. “I’m never going to JGR at six o’clock ever again. All those meetings are bad.”
He was referring to a meeting earlier this year when he learned about an unexpected NASCAR penalty.
“So, you were shocked at a meeting and that’s how you found out about it?” Lang asked.
“Yeah,” the driver said.
“Does that surprise you?” the reporter followed up.
“It does, but I mean, again, they’ve gotta do what’s best for the company,” he admitted.
On Friday, Gabehart appeared on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Naturally, his unexpected move was the main topic of conversation.
“One thing we always saw and could hear on the radio, can see the interaction, was the relationship between you and Denny and the success that came out of it,” show co-host Alan Cavanna said. “Has that relationship been hurt at all?”
“I mean, that’s an interesting question,” Gabehart said. “Is he disappointed? Sure. Am I disappointed? Sure. We don’t live in a vacuum where every decision is 100 percent good or 0 percent not. This is hard stuff. Nothing about it’s easy.
“But the reality is, as professionals, we know that what we’re trying to do is make Joe Gibbs Racing better. And it’s these types of decisions that have given Denny a 20-year successful career at this company. These things aren’t easy. There’s never an absolute.
“This one is no different. So, I think he understands that and certainly I understand that. And it’s a decision that we chose to make for the betterment of the company. And, like I said, I’m confident he’s going to have everything he needs to succeed next year and then some is the goal.”
It will be interesting to see a year from now if Gabehart was accurate in his prediction.
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