Denny Hamlin is second in the NASCAR Cup Series standings behind 23XI Racing driver Tyler Reddick, and he admits the scenario feels painfully complicated: winning the standings could force him into a role he doesn’t want if the championship ends up landing els
Denny Hamlin is watching the NASCAR Cup Series title picture tighten, and the tension isn’t just about finishing first.
He’s sitting in second place in the standings behind his 23XI Racing driver, Tyler Reddick. That means the most dramatic outcomes can land in the same weekend—win and lose the championship at the same time.
Hamlin described the specific kind of awkwardness he wants to avoid if events fall a certain way. He said he’d be “very proud” of Reddick. but the idea of Hamlin walking away with second place in the standings—then picking up his second-place trophy—and having to be the championship car owner that wins the title would feel strange.
“I’m very proud of him. Listen. I hope nothing would be more awkward. I think. than me finishing second in the standings to Tyler Reddick. going up and getting my second-place trophy. and then having to be the championship car owner that wins that. ” Denny Hamlin said. “So I don’t know how that would work. but hopefully the roles were reversed. and we win. and he finished second.”.
The numbers behind his stake are clear. Hamlin is still without a Cup Series title despite winning 61 races. The 45-year-old remains a regular-season champion as an owner, and that’s partly because Reddick won the title in 2024.
This season, Reddick has been building momentum through the first half of 2026. He has won five races, including the Daytona 500, and he has finished in the top 15 in every race this year. Hamlin pointed to the pattern starting early: Reddick began the season by winning at Daytona, Atlanta, and COTA.
Beneath that, 23XI Racing’s rise isn’t confined to one driver. With the production of Reddick and Bubba Wallace, who is currently in 10th place in the standings, the team is emerging as one of the top operations in NASCAR.
Hamlin also spoke with pride about how the team got here—starting from a much smaller, earlier dream. He began 23XI Racing with NBA legend Michael Jordan in 2020, and he said it’s been remarkable to see where the team has gone.
“It was a dream to start this thing five years ago. but to see where that team has gone in such a short amount of time is just. it’s very proud. ” Hamlin said. “I mean. there’s anyone that has any kids understands you’re far more proud of them of their accomplishments than anything that you actually do yourself. So for me. knowing that I have a much larger role of winning over there than what I do actually as a driver… As a driver. if I win. I’ve done a great job doing my little part. As a race team owner. you know that you’ve had a hand in just about everything in the performance of that car. especially on the competition side.”.
The whole title chase now sits on a razor’s edge of relationships: Hamlin wants the outcome where “the roles were reversed. ” even while he’s already saying he would be proud of the driver who sits directly above him in the standings. With Reddick’s five wins. unbroken top-15 consistency. and a team effort that has Wallace in 10th. the battle feels close enough to reach through every role—driver. owner. teammate. and rival—at once.
Denny Hamlin Tyler Reddick 23XI Racing NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 Michael Jordan Bubba Wallace 2026 standings