Hamlin owns Darlington
Denny Hamlin won at Darlington — his fifth career victory at the track — moving him closer to Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the all-time wins list. The Darlington stat graphic and season context lit up X as fans digested how Hamlin’s run reshapes active-driver histories at the South Carolina oval (x.com) (x.com).
The Goodyear 400 at Darlington ran to overtime after a late spin brought out the caution, and the race was decided when Hamlin emerged from a final pit stop under yellow to lead the two-lap shootout, winning by 0.597 seconds. (nbcsports.com) That result came on April 6, 2025, and marked Hamlin’s second straight Cup victory following Martinsville the previous weekend. (toyota.com) The Darlington scorecard now shows Hamlin with five wins at the track, a total that ties him with Bobby Allison, Cale Yarborough, Bill Elliott and Darrell Waltrip for fourth-most all-time at Darlington. (speedwaydigest.com) At Darlington Hamlin also owns series-best underlying numbers among active drivers: two poles, 14 top-five finishes, 20 top-10s and an average finish of roughly 7.889 across his runs at the oval. (speedwaymedia.com) The victory was Hamlin’s 56th career NASCAR Cup Series win, which put him into sole possession of 11th place on the sport’s all-time Cup wins list at the time. (nbcsports.com) By comparison, Kyle Busch’s Cup total stands at 63 wins while Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished his Cup career with 26 victories, leaving clear numerical gaps to those names on the all-time list. (nascar.com)
