Denny Hamlin Delivers Surprise Packages
                        And Surprisingly Strong Opinions

October 11, 2009

By Rebecca Gladden

Rebecca Gladden

The Turner and Phillis families of Phoenix were probably not surprised when a FedEx truck pulled up in front of their homes Wednesday morning, delivering the tickets they'd purchase to November's Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 NASCAR race at Phoenix International Raceway.

The real surprise came when Betty Turner and Donald Phillis answered a knock on their front door and saw the FedEx delivery driver: Sprint Cup Series star Denny Hamlin, who made a stopover in Phoenix Wednesday to experience one of the perks of being sponsored by shipping giant FedEx.

Photo By Rebecca Gladden Hamlin Autographs Hat For Betty Turner

"Oh, it's wonderful. I just didn't expect it. It's exciting," exclaimed race fan Betty Turner, who received the surprise delivery along with her daughter. "I go to PIR every year and I have for 25 years, my daughter and I." Turner said she couldn't wait to tell her grandchildren and other relatives about Hamlin's visit, adding, "My sister who lives in St. Louis will be so jealous!"

Like Turner, Donald and Janice Phillis received a FedEx package from Hamlin which included shirts, hats, and other items courtesy of FedEx and PIR, along with November race tickets. Hamlin himself drove the FedEx truck down the street and up to each resident's front curb.

Standing on the Phillis' doorstep, package in hand, Hamlin revealed that he's as quick with an ad lib as he is in a racecar when shipping competitor UPS drove by just as the FedEx package was being delivered. "They're trying to figure out where their lost package went," he quipped.

Photo By Rebecca Gladden Hamlin Surprises NASCAR Fan Donald Phillis With Special FedEx Delivery

Denny was also unruffled when the local media pressed Mr. Phillis to name his favorite driver, which turned out to be Tony Stewart, though Hamlin was standing right next him. Phillis quickly added that Hamlin was his pick to win the Chase.

Hamlin himself is pretty confident about his team's chances in this year's Chase, though he said Wednesday that the level of competition among the top title contenders is his biggest obstacle.

Along those lines, I asked Hamlin about the warning NASCAR issued recently to the No. 5 and 48 teams, currently first and second in the point standings, and whether Joe Gibbs Racing could glean anything about where the Hendrick teams are gaining an advantage.

"There are some things that they can learn to maybe push the rules a little more, and I'd like to see them do it, but it's just not something Joe (Gibbs) believes in," Hamlin said. "We've got to be smarter than those guys. We can't take advantage of any kind of rules to get a competitive advantage on the racetrack. We've just got to be smarter and have more talent in different places. Those guys have been strong over the last five or six years, especially the 48, and they max out everything. They don't leave anything to hide and that's the thing that the drivers love to see, obviously, is the crew chiefs getting everything that they can. But, for us, on the other side of the fence, it's very frustrating because if they are getting away with something, then it's tough for us to swallow."

So, does Hamlin believe the HMS teams are getting away with something?

"It's tough to say. I don't know all the facts," he said. "But, to me, a warning is, 'Hey, you're wrong this time, but if we catch you again, then we're going to have consequences.' If they were right, then there would be no question."

Hamlin also didn't mince words when it came to Brad Keselowski, a rookie in the Sprint Cup Series this year. The two have tangled on the track several times, most notably in the Nationwide Race at Dover a few weeks ago, and Hamlin said the tension between them remains unchanged. "I haven't talked to him at all. I really don't think he's man enough to call me and talk face-to-face. I just don't think that's his style."

Continuing, "It's how (Brad) uses the talent that, to me, is in question. I didn't realize it was in question with every single competitor on the Cup side that's raced with him and talked to me about it and said, 'We don't know what he was doing. You know, it was blatant.' The fact that you don't apologize and make yourself out to be the victim and (claim) that I was the one taking advantage of him when I was in front of him -- that's just kind of a ridiculous statement and showed that he just didn't have much level of maturity at that point."

The juxtaposition between Hamlin's soft-spoken nature and outspoken opinions is striking, but his low-key approach explains why he seems to fly under the radar in terms of media exposure. Despite being a legitimate contender for the Sprint Cup title, more attention is paid to Hamlin's teammates Kyle Busch and Joey Logano - though neither is in the Chase - than to Hamlin himself.

But, the lack of media focus is just fine with Denny.

"The more attention that's off of us, the more we can concentrate on doing our job. Hopefully, we'll get our turn in the spotlight when it's due, and that's going to be at Homestead when we have a shot to win the championship."

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