Freddie Craft went candid and outright denied any possibility of Denny Hamlin retiring soon. His case: Hamlin has a lot of fire left in him, which shows no signs of slowing down.

The comments arrive against the backdrop of one of the strongest performances of Hamlin’s Cup Series career, adding massively to his all-time win tally, especially after his performance to take the win from starting all the way back at Michigan and Nashville.

Hamlin currently stands ninth on the all-time Cup Series wins list, recording a massive 63 victories and sitting just slightly behind Dale Earnhardt (76 wins). The gap was essential to Craft’s argument.

Speaking on Door Bumper Clear, Craft was unconvinced by retirement predictions that everyone seems to be talking about. “Spot off. Like, I don't, I can't imagine, like, you guys know him better, it's better than I do, probably. But like, the only way I could say spot on is, I mean, if he wins the championship this year, kind of going away, it's an easy walk off for him.”

This is exactly what Craft narrowed it all down to. “But still, I just, he's way too competitive. He's got 13 wins to catch Dale Earnhardt, which is, like, it sounds like a lot, but when you're rattling off five or six a year, that's only a couple years away,” he explained.

Craft then pointed out what surpassing Earnhardt would mean and how monumental of an achievement it was. “I mean, I feel like that goal out there, that's, I mean, Dale Earnhardt, I think, is on everybody's Mount Rushmore of drivers.”

He added, “You know, to be able to chase him down or the potential of chasing him down, I just, I mean, Bob, I can't see this guy quitting after next season.”

The comments make sense when you take a look at Hamlin’s recent form, and in fact, if we were to look at the upcoming race, these comments make even more sense.

Denny Hamlin’s Pocono Dominance Supports Freddie Craft’s Argument

Few tracks show Denny Hamlin’s dominance as Pocono does. Hamlin is the winningest driver in Cup Series history at the track with seven victories.

The legend has made 36 starts at Pocono, out of which he has a massive 16 top-five finishes. Not only that, he has 24 top-10s and has led for a colossal 900 laps. In recent seasons, he has had a win and several runner-up finishes there.

These arguments, if anything, provide even more evidence for Freddie Craft’s belief that Hamlin is still an elite performer and far, far away from a possible retirement.

You can read more on the Daytona Racing Digest!

Written by

Uday Jakhar