How Denny Hamlin's racing mentors were honored in naming of Hamlin's son

On June 11, Denny Hamlin's first son, Jameson Drew, was born. His name is, in part, a tribute to those who helped his father become one of NASCAR's biggest stars. 

During a news conference at Pocono Raceway on Saturday, Hamlin explained how his son's name connects to both himself and two men who were instrumental in launching his career. 

"Obviously, I'm James (James Dennis), so that's James' son — Jameson." Hamlin said. "And Drew, we wanted to keep JD — obviously. J.D. Gibbs is a big, big part of my getting here to the Cup Series. James (Jim) Dean was the car owner I drove for in late models that got me the equipment to win all those races to get seen by J.D. (Gibbs). I'm JD. We're just keeping it going." 

Gibbs served as both a pit crew member and a driver for Joe Gibbs Racing in the 1990s before moving into an executive role with the team. Gibbs died in January 2019 at the age of 49. On Feb. 17, 2019, Hamlin won his second Daytona 500, paying tribute to Gibbs during his victory celebration. 

Dean helped fund Hamlin's journey to the national stage of NASCAR in the early 2000s before he signed with Joe Gibbs Racing as a development driver in 2004. 

The names of both Gibbs and Dean are now made even more special to Hamlin as the partial namesake of his son. 

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.