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2024 no longer appears to be Denny Hamlin's year to win elusive championship
Fifteen races through the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season, Denny Hamlin was on top of the world.
The Chesterfield, Virginia, native had won three races, led the Cup Series points standings and had just collected his fifth consecutive top-five finish, a runner-up effort in St. Louis.
Over the last 13 races, however, the No. 11 team has been in a tailspin, finishing top-10 in just four races, losing 10 playoff points due to a penalty and finishing the first two races of the playoffs in 24th and 23rd, respectively.
As the Cup Series heads to Bristol for the Round of 16 finale, Hamlin sits six points below the cut line, in danger of seeing his 2024 season end in the Tennessee hills.
Hamlin is the NASCAR equivalent of the Dallas Cowboys — year in and year out, it's his year, but that statement never culminates in a championship.
Whether it be an early spin, a slow pit stop, too much tape on the grill or a slow car, Hamlin's results in the season finale never go his way when he has a chance to win the title.
In the last two years, Hamlin has been knocked out of the playoffs in the Round of 8, though neither occurrence was his fault. Ross Chastain's 'Hail Melon' ended Hamlin's title hopes in 2022, and a steering issue at Homestead in 2023 ended up being the deciding factor in his season.
In the playoff opener at Atlanta, a poorly thought-out strategy doomed Hamlin's day, and Sunday's race at Watkins Glen was ill-fated from the first lap.
A lap one crash broke Hamlin's suspension, and while the No. 11 team repaired the car, another late crash relegated Hamlin to a 23rd-place finish.
Even if Hamlin makes it out of the first round with a clutch performance at Bristol, his recent slump and lack of playoff points indicate that making it past the Round of 12 may take a herculean effort.
If that's the case, Hamlin may have to wait yet another year to win his first Cup Series championship.
More must-reads:
- Wild Watkins Glen finish cements NASCAR's most chaotic season ever
- Watch: Big wreck on first lap at Watkins Glen collects multiple NASCAR playoff drivers
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NASCAR Championship Race preview: Favorite, underdog, top storylines
On Sunday, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series head to the Arizona desert to cap off the 2025 season in the Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway (3 p.m. ET, NBC, Peacock, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). Here is what you need to know ahead of the final race of the season: Favorite: Denny Hamlin (+400, per DraftKings) Hamlin has had more time to prepare for the title race than either of his competitors after winning the Round of 8 opener at Las Vegas three weeks ago, and is arguably in the best position he has been in to win that elusive Cup Series title. As a two-time winner at Phoenix and the runner-up in the spring to Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell, the speed is there for Hamlin to deliver. If the execution matches, the 44-year-old could become the third-oldest Cup champion all-time, only behind Hall of Famers Bobby Allison and Lee Petty, who were both 45. Underdog: Josh Berry (+2500, per DraftKings) Berry could easily disrupt the championship battle on Sunday as someone who has a knack for shorter and lesser-banked tracks. He was 10th at Martinsville one week ago, runner-up at New Hampshire and eighth at Richmond earlier this season. The overall body of work at Phoenix is not great with just a pair of top-10s in four starts, but Berry was fourth in the spring and scored points in both stages, so he is definitely worth keeping an eye on outside the title contenders. It all comes down to this After 35 races and a grueling playoff stretch, the Championship 4 drivers are ready for battle out west. In addition to Hamlin, Chase Briscoe and William Byron won their way to Phoenix with wins at Talladega and Martinsville, respectively, while Kyle Larson pointed his way in over Bell. It has been a six-year title drought for JGR, something the season wins leader Hamlin and top-fives leader Briscoe can change. On the other side is Hendrick Motorsports, an organization that wants this championship really "bad" after its own four-year wait since Larson's 2021 crown. Either way, both organizations are hungry for another title and three of the four drivers, aside from Larson, are looking for their first, which should make for a dramatic culmination to the 2025 season. Non-playoff drivers looking to play spoiler If a Championship 4 driver does not win the race on Sunday, look no further than Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano of Team Penske, who were just eliminated from title contention at Martinsville but have won each of the past three titles in the desert. Elsewhere, Bell has won each of the last two spring races at Phoenix and Ross Chastain won the title race two years ago despite not being among the Championship 4. The main focus is on the title contenders, but don't forget about the rest of the drivers in the field who are looking to end the season on a high note. Championship Race on the move after Sunday After hosting Championship Weekend since the 2020 season, Phoenix Raceway will lose its title races to Homestead-Miami Speedway next season as the 1.5-mile facility returns for the first time since being the host site from 2002-19. The decision is ultimately the right one given the current 1.5-mile package and the multi-groove racing there. Phoenix will still keep its second date on the schedule, but it will certainly be a change of pace after a six-year run for the one-mile track.
Nationals set to hire MLB's youngest manager in over 50 years
The Washington Nationals were one of a handful of teams heading into the offseason needing a new manager. The Nats fired former manager Dave Martinez, who helped lead them to their first World Series title in 2019, ahead of the All-Star break. They then had to decide if they wanted to keep interim manager Miguel Cairo or head in another direction. The Nationals decided to go in a different direction, announcing on Thursday that they are set to hire the youngest MLB manager in over 50 years. Nationals will hire Blake Butera to be their next manager After going 29-43 after taking over for Martinez, the Nationals decided that Cairo wasn't the man to lead them forward. Washington is hiring 33-year-old Blake Butera to be its next manager, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Butera will be a new voice to pair with the new president of baseball operations, Paul Toboni, who took over for former executive Mike Rizzo. According to Passan, Butera will be the youngest manager in more than 50 years. Butera joins Oliver Marmol (39) of the St. Louis Cardinals as the only managers in baseball under 40 years old. In his four-year career as a minor league manager in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, Butera accumulated a 258-144 record. That should bode well for him going to Washington, especially after six straight losing seasons. A former 35th-round draft pick of the Rays, Butera is also a former two-time minor league Manager of the Year in the Rays organization and was the bench coach for Team Italy in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Nationals need to give Blake Butera everything he needs to be successful Being so young and "inexperienced," Toboni and the Nationals organization will need to surround Butera with a veteran coaching staff. In particular, an experienced bench coach to help guide him through being a big league manager. Someone like former Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington would be a good hire to help guide Butera, given his managerial experience and longtime coaching. Coming from the Rays organization, Butera can bring over things he's learned there to help the Nationals improve as an organization. The Rays are consistently at the forefront of analytics and new, innovative ways to build a successful baseball team. Having a young roster and only two players with a decade in the big leagues (Josh Bell and Trevor Williams), Butera should find it easy to connect with some of his younger players, given his age. However, veterans may find it hard to listen to someone as inexperienced as Butera, which he’ll need to work on if the Nationals add any more to help mentor their young core.
Charles Barkley knows the real problem with LeBron James
LeBron James may be out due to sciatica, but Charles Barkley is not buying it. He thinks he knows what is really going on with the Los Angeles Lakers star. Barkley was goofing around during “Inside the NBA” on ESPN Wednesday and talked about the Lakers, who had several players out for their game at the Minnesota Timberwolves. James was listed as out due to sciatica, which is a nerve issue. Barkley thinks the sciatica injury is a cover for something else. “First of all, LeBron doesn’t have a sciatica. They just put ‘old.’ O-L-D, with an extra ‘D,’ too,” Barkley joked. An update on James’ condition came out this week, saying that the Lakers forward could return in a few weeks. The Lakers have seemed to suggest that there is no urgency to rush James into action. However, Luka Doncic also getting hurt recently may have changed things for the team. For now, the Lakers are 3-2 and have been relying on Austin Reaves to do plenty of scoring. He is averaging 34.2 points per game this season. James is 40 years old and entering his 23rd NBA season. He’s allowed to have “old” or sciatica as an injury issue. As Barkley knows and often says, Father Time is undefeated.
Three wild quotes from Louisiana governor Jeff Landry that could wreck LSU head-coaching search
George Springer's status for Game 6 is becoming more clear
George Springer’s status for Game 6 of the World Series is becoming more clear. Springer has missed the last two games of the World Series after hurting his side on a swing in his Toronto Blue Jays’ 18-inning loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3. The Blue Jays were able to win Game 4 on Tuesday and Game 5 on Wednesday despite the outfielder’s absence. On Thursday, Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Springer is physically ready to play in Game 6. “He’s checked every box physically so far,” Schneider said of Springer. Getting Springer back would be a nice boost to the Blue Jays’ lineup, which has performed well even without him. Springer went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in Game 3 before leaving the game. He’s batting .246 with an .884 OPS this postseason and has mashed 6 doubles and 4 home runs in 57 at-bats. Springer went 1-for-3 in Game 2 against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is the Dodgers’ scheduled starter for Game 6. Springer’s double was the Blue Jays’ only extra-base hit of the game, and he scored their only run that contest. His presence would be a big help for Toronto.
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