Heading into the Lenox Industrial Tools 301 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Denny Hamlin has two strong finishes pushing him into this weekend. 

With a fifth place finish last weekend at Infineon and an eighth place effort two weeks ago at Michigan, Hamlin has been the first Joe Gibbs Racing driver across the finish line for the past two races.

“We needed those finishes because we had a rough stretch with tough results at both Dover and Pocono that put us right on the edge of the top-12 and that’s where we do not want to be,” stated Hamlin. “At this point of the season, we just want to make sure we are in position to make the Chase so we can fight for a championship and that means making sure our equipment is good and we are running smart races.”

In six previous races at the ‘Magic Mile’ Hamlin has stockpiled a resume including one win, two top-5’s and five top-10’s. With only one finish outside the top-10 (a 15th place result in the fall event of 2007), Hamlin is a force to be reckoned with at Loudon.

“This track is faster than you would think so you need horsepower to take advantage of the long straights, but getting through, and off, the corner is where you win or lose at New Hampshire,” Hamlin said. “It's definitely a little bit different than any other track we go to because it almost seems like it's banked in the other direction on the bottom. But you can go way up high or run on the bottom so there are some options for you to find a fast line. I like the tracks that demand you to feel your way through the corner and New Hampshire is one of those tracks. You need to find that rhythm, hit your marks getting into the corner so you can roll through the center and get back on the gas as soon as possible for the next straight.”

With the new addition of double-file restarts in NASCAR’s top series, Hamlin feels that the newest addendum will add even more excitement to this weekend’s race.

“I think the double-file restarts will be a good change to this race at New Hampshire.” The driver of the No. 11 FedEx Toyota continued, “This will be the first time we’ll line up like that on a shorter track and it should make for even closer racing. It’s been a really good change for the Cup series so far from both the fans and drivers perspective - and this weekend will be a really good test for everyone.”

 MORE NASCAR NEWS