Denny Hamlin continues to prove fans' longtime critique wrong

You can still point to Hamlin beating himself when he clearly jumped the start of the Nashville race from the pole, but his ability to overcome that by not making any mistakes on pit road and getting consistent stops from his crew was instrumental to him bouncing back from that adversity.

Even at Michigan when unapproved adjustments forced Hamlin to drop to the rear of the field from the pole for the second week in a row, he methodically worked his way back through the field and had a mistake-free day on pit road.

At Pocono, Hamlin was once again the car to beat, but strategy mixed the running order up and made it anything but a walk in the park for the 45-year-old. Aside from nearly blowing his engine and giving the race away at one point at the "Tricky Triangle," it was another flawless performance from Hamlin and his No. 11 team.

Hamlin revealed that NBA legend and 23XI Racing co-owner Michael Jordan challenged him during the offseason, one that started in heartbreak following another missed opportunity at a Cup Series title and turned tragic when his father, Dennis, died due to injuries suffered in a house fire.

Upcoming races at San Diego and Sonoma will present some obstacles considering Hamlin's struggles on road and street courses in his career. With that said, he has erased what was once a 129-point deficit to Reddick after Watkins Glen. Four races later, he is right back in the hunt for the regular-season title.

The questions will still linger about whether this will finally be the year Hamlin claims that elusive title. Regardless, his improvements on pit road — compared with a stout pit crew and the blistering speed in the No. 11 each week — have put him in an excellent position to do so amid the best stretch of his career.