Denny Hamlin’s impact on NASCAR goes far beyond his presence behind the wheel. His influence now extends to shaping future talent as a co-owner of 23XI Racing. A recent multi-contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing solidifies Hamlin’s dominant presence on the track. And off the track, his most recent developmental recruit continues to dazzle in the Craftsman Truck Series.
Yes, we’re talking about none other than Corey Heim! The 23-year-old has already secured the regular season championship, not once, but twice in three years. Still, despite cementing his status, Heim admits to feeling disappointed in the aftermath of claiming the title.
Corey Heim grumbles about missing his shot at victory
Denny Hamlin, the veteran Cup Series star and co-owner of 23XI Racing, has played a pivotal role in Toyota’s driver development pipeline. Corey Heim, a rising star in the truck series driving the No. 11 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro for TRICON Garage, is very much part of the ecosystem. Hamlin’s influence as a Toyota ambassador and success both on and off track help lift the entire Toyota racing development program, and he also signed Corey Heim to a development deal with 23XI Racing, giving him select Cup Series starts under their banner in 2025.
And as for the Truck Series, Corey Heim has delivered a stellar performance for 2025, with wins at Daytona, Las Vegas, Texas, Charlotte, and Lime Rock, accumulating five victories and a series record of 14 stage wins, propelling him to a dominant regular season lead by over 100 points. At Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Heim started in a strong position and drove competently, but never felt he had a real shot at the win.
As he recounted in a post-race interview with FOX, he said, “Yeah, it feels really good [to win the championship]. Just a testament to how good we’ve been this year. You know, I feel like this is probably the first race where I haven’t had a legitimate shot to compete for the win. So that really says something, and you know, a little bit disappointing to come here. I was actually excited to come here and try to improve.”
Corey Heim entered the TSport 200 at IRP, already leading the championship and looking to clinch the regular season title. Because qualifying was canceled due to rain, Heim, the points leader, was awarded the pole position, with defending IRP winner Ty Majeski starting beside him on the front row. From the green flag, Corey led early, pacing the field through the opening segment. He led 20 laps before ceding control to Layne Riggs, who dominated much of the middle portion of the race. Stewart Friesen also led some laps later in the final stage before Riggs took charge for the last stint and won the race, leading 160 laps in what was a truly spectacular performance.
Your 2025 @NASCAR_Trucks Regular Season Champion @CoreyHeim_! pic.twitter.com/fkzbnmzzGz
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) July 26, 2025
Despite ending up in fourth, his best career finish at IRP, Corey Heim lamented not running amongst the top-5 for most of the day, something he got accustomed to for most of the season. Heim continued, “I’ve never felt like this track has been my best, but unfortunately, just kind of roamed around the outside of the top five all day and had a really good restart there at the end to get us a track position to finish fourth. But yeah, just really proud of all the guys at TRICON Garage. I mean, they’ve been lights out this year.” A late restart boosted his track position, which proved sufficient to clinch the 2025 regular season championship, extending his lead to 144 points over Chandler Smith. The championship was the cherry on top of a cake Heim did not enjoy eating.
Heim has now won two Truck Series regular-season championships in three years, previously in 2023, his first full-time season, where he became the first driver ever to clinch the regular-season title despite missing a race. However, the way the championship race unfolded in 2023 is not something Heim will look back on too fondly. After wrecking Carson Hocevar to stuff both of their chances at a title in 2023, Heim will be determined to make things right and finally clinch the title in 2025.
And this championship would be pivotal for Heim. With Denny Hamlin signing a contract extension to stay at JGR, his next best bet for a Cup Series seat is at 23XI Racing, another Toyota team that Hamlin owns and, as aforementioned, employs Heim in a part-time role. However, before deciding whether or not to sign Heim to the Cup Series full-time, Hamlin has had some tough decisions to make on the track in the Cup Series.
Denny Hamlin reflects on racing teammates
Joe Gibbs Racing reaffirmed its strength at Dover last weekend, with Denny Hamlin securing victory in the Autotrader EchoPark 400. The win was contested not only against rival teams, but a freight of JGR teammates, including Christopher Bell and Chase Briscoe. As Bell spun out after a late restart, Briscoe fought hard but settled for runner-up. Meanwhile, Hamlin reflected candidly on how it feels to race teammates at high stakes.
Denny Hamlin said, “Certainly, as a driver, [racing your teammate for the win] puts you in a more difficult spot. When you have to go see that person the next day in a meeting, you certainly think about it. You think about what the repercussions are if we take each other out, and another team wins. You certainly then have to answer to the boss, not just the other person. So it does (put you in a tough spot). It puts your teammates in a tough spot when they’re challenging for a win. But, I think there’s ways that you can do it without jeopardizing each other, that’s also maybe a little aggressive. I think that everyone nowadays is aggressive for race wins. It’s just a tough balance when your teammates.”
Despite the internal pressure, Hamlin’s competitive fire remains undimmed, tactically strong, and mentally poised to race aggressively when needed. Chase Briscoe, in his first year at JGR, noted that if Hamlin weren’t his teammate, the dynamic and racing start between them would likely look very different, a compliment to Hamlin’s reputation and on-track leadership. Briscoe said after coming 2nd at Dover, “Yeah, I mean, if it wasn’t a teammate, I definitely could have been a little more aggressive.”
Moving forward, Hamlin is eyeing more victories for both himself and his team, particularly at Indy, where JGR hasn’t won since Kyle Busch’s triumph in 2016, and Hamlin has never won in his career. The Brickyard 400 remains the only crown jewel missing from Hamlin’s crown. Do you think he can triumph at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend? Let us know in the comments!
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