Denny Hamlin Frustrated By Blown Engine in Cup Practice at Chicago

Originally posted on Racing America on SI
By Toby Christie | Last updated Jul 5, 2025 1:41 PM ET

Nigel Kinrade, Lumen Digital Agency for Toyota GAZOO Racing

The race weekend did not get off to the start that Denny Hamlin and the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing team were looking for Saturday afternoon at the Chicago Street Course. The driver, who has three wins through the opening 18 races of the season, suffered a strange issue on the opening lap of practice for Sunday's Grant Park 165.

Heading through Turn 6 on his opening lap around the 2.2-mile street course, Hamlin suffered a detonation in the engine of his No. 11 Progressive Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota Camry XSE. As the fluid began shooting out of the exhaust pipes of his car, Hamlin would spin in his own fluid in Turn 6.

There's trouble right away for @dennyhamlin! pic.twitter.com/KpYIQFCpYE
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 5, 2025

Hamlin would climb from his car and lean down onto the track surface, where he would investigate the underside of his race car, which had become lifeless due to the surprise engine failure. After debriefing with the leadership of Joe Gibbs Racing in the garage area at the Chicago Street Course, Hamlin was baffled about the engine failure, which occurred the first time he touched the accelerator in the session.

"Yeah, don't know. It's just -- hadn't even hit the gas yet. Came off of Turn 4, started accelerating, and blew the bottom out," Hamlin explained.

The frustration was palpable for Hamlin, who suffered an early-race engine failure at Texas Motor Speedway earlier this season, which resulted in a last-place finish, and the following weekend at Kansas Speedway, a drivetrain issue ended his day with a 36th-place finish.

Adding to Hamlin's frustrations, which were already high due to a mechanical failure ending his chance at on-track activity on Saturday, is the fact that the Chicago Street Course is a relatively new circuit on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and every lap is crucial for drivers heading into Sunday's Grant Park 165.

"A lot of things, we want to be in control as drivers. We want to be in control of our result. You don't want to have processes or mechanical [failures]s stop you from that," Hamlin said. "And obviously, this is a racetrack that is important to have reps. And we spend hours upon hours practicing and getting ready and all of that stuff, and couldn't even make a pace lap before we blew up."

The @truTV crew catches up with @dennyhamlin following his issues early in practice. pic.twitter.com/1xp5u2x7bI
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) July 5, 2025

Due to the early-session engine failure, Hamlin will be done for the day on Saturday afternoon. He will not have a chance to turn a qualifying lap in his No. 11 Toyota, and the driver, who has just one road course victory throughout his illustrious career, will have to start from the rear in Sunday's event at the 2.2-mile 12-turn course that runs through Grant Park in downtown Chicago.