Yardbarker
Yardbarker
x
It's no longer Denny Hamlin's year to win elusive championship
Denny Hamlin speaks to media members. Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

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.  

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

More must-reads:

TODAY'S BEST

New York Knicks Predicted to Trade Karl-Anthony Towns For Dallas Mavericks Star
NBA

New York Knicks Predicted to Trade Karl-Anthony Towns For Dallas Mavericks Star

The New York Knicks have had a busy summer thus far as they have made multiple additions to their roster to try and improve off their run to the Eastern Conference Finals last season. Of course, the Knicks also made a head coaching change to begin the summer as they fried Tom Thibodeau and replaced him with two-time Coach of the Year winner Mike Brown. During free agency, New York added Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele to upgrade their bench at a cheap cost, which is an area that they struggled with last season. The Knicks do have one more roster spot open which they will likely use to add another veteran player to their bench. While the Knicks have focused on upgrading their depth this summer, Sports Illustrated’s Jackson Caudell recently created a mock trade that would see New York send Karl-Anthony Towns to the Dallas Mavericks for one of their star players along with depth. In the trade, the Knicks would acquire Klay Thompson, Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington from the Mavericks while Dallas would land Towns and Vit Krejci. The Atlanta Hawks are the third team involved in the trade and they would receive Caleb Martin and two second-round picks from the Mavericks. For the Knicks, it would be a tough decision to move on from Towns but they would be able to fill some glaring holes in their roster with their return in this deal. Thompson would give them a much-needed three-point sharpshooter in their starting lineup while both Washington and Gafford would be major additions to their frontcourt, especially on the defensive end. Despite this, the Mavericks may not want to move on from three of their key players to acquire Towns, who struggled in the playoffs last season, primarily on defense. While that may be the case, making this trade would be a massive upgrade to the Knicks’ lineup and depth that could make them the team to beat in the Eastern Conference next season.

Pelicans' exec makes team's stance on Zion Williamson crystal clear
NBA

Pelicans' exec makes team's stance on Zion Williamson crystal clear

It’s wild how quickly the NBA narrative can flip. A year ago, Zion Williamson was in every trade rumor possible. People were questioning his health, his work ethic, even his future in New Orleans. And the Pelicans? They didn’t really deny any of it. It felt like both sides were one step away from walking. But things have shifted this offseason — quietly, but clearly. The Pelicans could’ve pulled the plug. Zion’s contract gave them outs, and the trade market might’ve still brought back some real value. Instead, they stuck with him. And based on what one of their own just said, they’re not just keeping him around — they’re still betting big on him. In a recent interview with Spotrac’s Keith Smith, an anonymous Pelicans executive made it crystal clear. “Zion is still our guy. We’re all in on him. We think he’s going to have a huge year. We’ve had some bad injury luck and some things that just haven’t worked out. This partnership hasn’t even come close to reaching our best yet.” That’s not something you say if you’re halfway in. They backed it up with their offseason moves, too. They traded CJ McCollum and brought in Jordan Poole, a high-usage creator who can take pressure off Zion. They drafted Jeremiah Fears with the No. 7 pick, a dynamic young guard. They added Kevon Looney, a reliable veteran who brings playoff experience and toughness. Those aren’t tear-it-down moves — those are “let’s try this another way” moves. Of course, Zion’s health is still the question. That never really goes away. He played just 30 games last season, but in those games he looked solid: 24.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per night on 56.7 percent shooting. The explosiveness was there. The playmaking was sharp. And the hope for New Orleans is that this time, he can finally sustain it. What’s interesting is how the front office is trying to create a better environment around him. Joe Dumars has stepped in to lead basketball operations and is reportedly building a closer relationship with Zion — dinners, real conversations, not just surface-level stuff. It feels like, for once, the team is trying to meet him halfway. It’s a risk, sure. But it’s a calculated one. The West is brutal and the margin for error is thin. Still, if Zion can stay healthy for 60 games, and if Poole finds a rhythm and guys like Trey Murphy and Herb Jones keep improving — this team has a shot to be in the mix. The quote from the exec says it all. They could’ve hit reset, moved on, cleaned house. But they didn’t. They’re still in. And now it’s on Zion to hold up his end of the deal. After everything that’s happened, they’re telling the world they still believe. Now it’s time to find out if they’re right.

Major Update On A Potential Goldberg AEW Retirement Match
Wrestling

Major Update On A Potential Goldberg AEW Retirement Match

Few names are more synonymous with Turner wrestling than Goldberg. However, it doesn't appear the WCW legend is likely to get one more match on the platform with AEW. The WWE Hall of Famer wrapped up his career with a retirement match against Gunther. He would lose to the WWE World Heavyweight Champion at Saturday Night's Main Event, seemingly bringing an end to his legendary in-ring career. Unfortunately, it does not appear all were happy with how the bout played out. Goldberg's retirement speech following the match was cut short due to broadcast restrictions, and while he had high praise for his opponent, he expressed major unhappiness about he match itself and its presentation. He made several thinly veiled shots at WWE management for the lack of promotion for the match, and expressed being upset over it not taking place on a Premium Live Event. Could a potential Goldberg match in AEW happen? The talk of his displeasure with the match immediately led to rumors over whether or not Tony Khan and AEW would bring Goldberg in to give him a more fitting sendoff. He made his name on the Turner platform while a member of the WCW roster, so a return to the airwaves on Dynamite or Collision could potentially bring synergy. That, though, appears unlikely. WrestleVotes reported on Thursday that AEW sources indicated there is no direct connection between AEW and Goldberg at the moment. It reports the 58-year-old is still believed to be a under WWE contract as is, so any contact would be risky territory for either side. Additionally, said sources noted it would be surprising to see AEW move towards bringing Goldberg in given its good standing with fans following AEW All In: Texas. AEW, of course, did serve as the landing space for Sting's legendary retirement run, one that came to a close at AEW Revolution in 2024. It is also not clear as to whether or not Goldberg would be healthy for one more match, as he revealed he broke his hand during his final outing.

Steelers have big concern as team reportedly doesn't think key player takes his job seriously
NFL

Steelers have big concern as team reportedly doesn't think key player takes his job seriously

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been in the sports news cycle throughout the 2025 offseason. It has been an extremely busy time for general manager Omar Khan and the rest of the front office. Moves have been made on both sides of the ball, which has fueled excitement in a city that has not seen a playoff win since the 2016 campaign. One of the more intriguing pieces to the puzzle as training camp gets underway isn't necessarily any of the new faces, but rather, a group that returns its core from 2024. The offensive line is expected to play a crucial role. Offensive line coach Pat Meyer is on the hot seat for what seems like the third year in a row, and his training camp got off to the wrong start when the most experienced member of his unit, Isaac Seumalo, was placed on the non-football injury list. This will provide a challenge during team development, as offensive linemen need to build rapport with one another and be in unison once the regular season kicks off. Another storyline is the presence of 2023 first-round selection, Broderick Jones. The Steelers traded up to pick him out of the University of Georgia, but he has yet to live up to the hype. In all fairness, he was drafted to be a left tackle, but hasn't gotten the chance to play there permanently. He will have the opportunity to do so in his third professional season, and he has a fifth-year option to consider that could be declined in the 2026 offseason if he underperforms. One of the most team's most respected insiders, Gerry Dulac, appeared on the "Steve Jones Show" on Wednesday, and when the left tackle came up in discussion, it wasn't all positive. The Steelers apparently believe he can be a phenomenal lineman, but they aren't convinced he is completely bought in. "They really really think Broderick Jones is immensely talented," Dulac said of the third-year offensive lineman. "They would just like to see him mature, kind of professionally, personally [and] take his job and his performance just a little more seriously." This is certainly a concerning comment from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter. Jones was looked at as a raw prospect coming out of college, but he always possessed the size and talent to be a great player in the NFL. If he isn't taking his job seriously enough, it would suggest that he is trying to rely on his skills alone, which is never good enough at the highest level. The offensive line has the ability to determine how the Steelers' 2025 season goes. With a 41-year-old quarterback in Aaron Rodgers, the big men up front will need to keep the guy under center upright. The team will also want to run the ball effectively, so it will be imperative to create holes and win the line of scrimmage on a consistent basis. Pittsburgh isn't necessarily starting off training camp on the right foot with Seumalo unable to participate in team activities, and now the comments from Dulac surely will be cause for concern when it comes to Jones, who has yet to convince the fan base that he was worth a first-round pick in 2023. If he wants to remain in the Steel City long-term, Jones should be preparing to be the most serious individual in the locker room. Steelers should have one clear advantage on the offensive line Zach Frazier was selected in the second-round back in 2024, and he was one of the most important rookies in the NFL. Entering his sophomore season, he is expected to not just take a step forward, but play like a Pro Bowler. While there could be some questions and inconsistencies in certain spots, Frazier should be the No. 1 guy that the group can rely on week in and week out.

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!