Denny Hamlin appeared to be on his way to his first NASCAR Cup Series championship on Sunday at Phoenix Raceway until a late caution for fellow Championship 4 contender William Byron forced overtime and changed everything.
Hamlin dealt with clutch issues and lost track position following a lengthy pit stop at the end of the second stage when his left rear tire was going down. In years past, that likely would have ended his title hopes, but this time around, Hamlin rallied and the title was his for the taking until Byron experienced his own tire issues and flipped the script entirely.
In an effort to put Hamlin on offense, crew chief Chris Gayle elected to go with four fresh tires for the overtime restart. However, non-playoff drivers Brad Keselowski, Ryan Preece, and Alex Bowman stayed out, and multiple drivers, including Championship 4 contender Kyle Larson, went with two tires.
As a result, Hamlin restarted on the inside of the fifth row and could only recover to sixth, three spots behind Larson as the Hendrick Motorsports driver became a two-time champion.
The loss is the latest dose of heartbreak for Hamlin, who was looking to end a six-year title drought for Joe Gibbs Racing and claim that elusive championship. When the checkered flag waved in the desert, Ryan Blaney picked up his first Phoenix win, Larson took home his second championship, and Hamlin was left wondering what could have been in his latest bid for a title.
Another championship slips away from Denny Hamlin
It was the latest instance of championship heartbreak for the 44-year-old Chesterfield, Virginia native, who was making his fifth Championship 4 appearance and seventh bid for a championship entering a season finale over his 20-year career.
To make matters worse, Hamlin had only led a combined 52 laps in his four prior title race attempts, but he was out front after the scheduled 312 laps of Sunday's race as the field prepared for the two-lap finish in overtime. He led 208 total laps on Sunday, compared to Larson's zero.
Unlike Joey Logano when he won his third championship in 2024, Larson would have been the 2025 champion on points alone if the one-race, winner-take-all format was not the title decider.
That does not mean it is any easier for Hamlin to take, or for disgruntled fans who have had enough of the playoff system, but it does show that Larson put together a consistent season worthy enough of a championship, even if he did not win a race since May.
It still does not take away from the "numb" feeling that Hamlin experienced after the disappointing finish, as he remains the winningest driver of all-time (60 wins) without a championship to his name.
With some potential playoff format changes on the way, there still may be a path toward his first title, but Sunday's outcome raises the question of whether or not Hamlin will ever hoist the Bill France Cup, given all the ways he has endured losing the championship.