Denny Hamlin stood on pit road in Las Vegas, staring at the leaderboard. It was another frustrating race, another missed opportunity. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver had gone 29 races without a win. That streak stretched all the way back to April 28, 2024, at Dover. Nearly a year had passed since he last held a checkered flag, and the frustration was starting to weigh on him. “It feels like an eternity,” Hamlin admitted after the race.
The No. 11 team had lost speed at the end of 2024, and every week since the start of 2025, they seemed just a step behind the top contenders. Even when they had a chance, like at Phoenix, something—or someone—stood in their way. Christopher Bell had beaten him to the finish line by 0.049 seconds, one of the closest margins in track history. Hamlin was tired of being close, and he needed to win.
But then came Martinsville. A track that had once been his playground but had turned into a source of heartbreak in recent years. This time, though, Hamlin flipped the script. With a dominant performance, he sent a clear message—he wasn’t done yet. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver put on a clinic at Martinsville Speedway. He led more than half the race and took the checkered flag in the Cook Out 400, finishing 4.617 seconds ahead of Christopher Bell.
Notably, the Martinsville race had its share of chaos—cautions, restarts, and tire strategies. But Hamlin was in control. He cleared Bell for the lead with 73 laps to go and drove off into the Virginia sunset, securing his first win of the 2025 season. Bubba Wallace, Chase Elliott, and Kyle Larson rounded out the top five, but no one had an answer for the No. 11 Toyota. After climbing out of his car, Hamlin was emotional. He knew how much this victory meant—not just to him but to his team.
“Chris Gabehart, all the engineers, the pit crew—everybody really on that wall right there—just deciding that they were gonna come here with a different approach… And it was just amazing,” Denny Hamlin said after the race. Interestingly, after winning the race, Hamlin held a flag that read “11 Against the World.” Speaking about it, he said, “Well, my buddies are Ohio State fans that I hung out with at the end of last year. We always had “Ohio State Against the World.” So now, it’s “11 Against the World.”
11 against the world.@dennyhamlin talks with @JamieLittleTV after his Martinsville win. pic.twitter.com/n5hdskSqSd
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) March 30, 2025
This was more than just any another race win. Hamlin had not won at Martinsville in nearly a decade, with his last victory at the track coming in 2015. For years, he had come close, only to fall short. This time, he sealed the deal. It was his sixth Martinsville win and his 55th career victory in the NASCAR Cup Series. That put him in elite company, tying him with Rusty Wallace for 11th on the all-time wins list.
The Cook Out 400 featured plenty of action beyond Hamlin’s domination. Stage 1 saw Joey Logano take an early lead after two cautions. Despite a late race spin, the Team Penske driver clinched his first top 10 finish of the season as he crossed the line in eighth place. Stage 2 was where Hamlin truly made his presence felt, holding off a hard-charging Chase Elliott despite running on older tires.
In the final stage, things got wild. Cautions stacked up, including one for Noah Gragson and Chris Buescher getting tangled up. Despite the chaos, Bubba Wallace once again proved his worth. The 23XI Racing driver clinched back-to-back third-position finishes as he dominated with his No.23 car. But not everyone was that lucky. Woods Brothers Racing driver Josh Berry had a very frustrating end to his race in Martinsville.
Josh Berry’s bizarre day at Martinsville!
While Denny Hamlin celebrated, Josh Berry endured a nightmare race. The No. 21 driver had high hopes coming into Martinsville, but his day quickly unraveled in the worst way. It started in Stage 1 when Berry was running well inside the top three. After a Caution on Lap 34 he clinched the lead and was looking poised for a strong finish. However, a disaster struck. During a routine pit stop, Berry collided with Bubba Wallace. The No. 23 slammed into Berry’s driver-side door.
The impact knocked out Berry’s car’s electronics, shutting down his dash completely. Suddenly, he was two laps down, stuck in the garage as his crew scrambled to replace the battery. But the problem didn’t end there. Every pit stop, Berry’s team had to swap out the battery again, eating up precious time. What should have been a top-five finish turned into a race of survival. However, the Wood Brothers Racing team clarified that the issue was not caused by the pit lane collision but the damage was already done.
Cook Out 400 full race results:
Fin
No
Driver
1
11
Denny Hamlin
2
20
Christopher Bell
3
23
Bubba Wallace
4
9
Chase Elliott
5
5
Kyle Larson
6
1
Ross Chastain
7
60
Ryan Preece
8
22
Joey Logano
9
19
Chase Briscoe
10
34
Todd Gilliland
11
12
Ryan Blaney
12
71
Michael McDowell
13
54
Ty Gibbs
14
45
Tyler Reddick
15
10
Ty Dillon
16
38
Zane Smith
17
8
Kyle Busch
18
3
Austin Dillon
19
77
Carson Hocevar
20
47
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
21
99
Daniel Suarez
22
24
William Byron
23
16
A.J. Allmendinger
24
43
Erik Jones
25
17
Chris Buescher
26
42
John Hunter Nemechek
27
6
Brad Keselowski
28
48
Alex Bowman
29
7
Justin Haley
30
4
Noah Gragson
31
51
Cody Ware
32
35
Riley Herbst
33
21
Josh Berry
34
41
Cole Custer
35
88
Shane Van Gisbergen
36
66
Casey Mears
37
50
Burt Myers
38
2
Austin Cindric
The post “11 Against the World”- Denny Hamlin Frees Himself of Martinsville Curse as He Cements His Legacy Among NASCAR Legends appeared first on EssentiallySports.
