Denny Hamlin says his new deal with JGR "most likely" his last

Speaking to the media in a Saturday press conference at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Denny Hamlin revealed that his latest contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing might be his last.

Hamlin signed a two-year deal to continue driving the No. 11 Toyota through the 2027 season, and while he wouldn’t say for certain, the 44-year-old indicated that it could be his final contract extension with JGR.

“I would say probably, most likely,” said Hamlin. “Who knows, but most likely.”

Deciding when to hang up the helmet

Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Photo by: Chris Graythen – Getty Images

As for the length of the deal, Hamlin said it all came down to what he thought made the most sense for himself. He has spent the entirety of his NASCAR Cup career with JGR, dating back to the 2005 season.

“For me, it’s all I feel comfortable with,” said Hamlin. “Three years? Who knows what can happen three years from now, so I just want to make sure that I get them (Joe Gibbs Racing) proper time and make sure I commit to them for not one year, multiple years. Let them try to build continue to build the program. No particular reason other than, if I was 26, I would take 10 years, but I just I want to make sure that I’m still at my peak form in my final year. That could be tailing off for three years, so I don’t want that.”

When those two years are up, what will Hamlin take into consideration before deciding if he wants to hang up the helmet or not? According to the veteran driver, the two main factors will be where the team is at and how competitive Hamlin feels he continue to be behind the wheel.

“All those things are just big factors in it, but I just I want the ability to know I can win my last race,” continued Hamlin. “That’s going to be the deciding factor. I’m not going to wait until I start to head downward and then retire. I don’t want to go through a whole year. I understand if it just happens naturally in the second half of the final year, then it just happens, but I don’t want to have to go through another season, if I’m starting to tail off the end of next year, I’ll just retire. I could retire whenever I want to retire, so I think that I’m just going to see how things go.”

What else does Hamlin want out of his career?

Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota

Photo by: Meg Oliphant / Getty Images

Despite fears of slowing down, Hamlin remains a highly competitive driver on track, leading all drivers with four wins this year. He is currently just two wins away from cracking the top ten on the all-time wins list. So, besides a championship, what else does Hamlin want out of his Hall of Fame career?

“Just more crown jewels,” said Hamlin. “I don’t know exactly how many I have now. Seven? So, if I can get (to) eight or nine, I don’t know if that changes much, but it certainly makes me feel a little better. You have to have goals, and those crown jewels will be one that you know we go to races like this (Brickyard 400), they’re going to talk about ones that people that have won here at this race track and won crown jewel events. I want to be high on the crown jewel list of winners.”

As for longevity, there are few drivers who can say they have raced for the same team for 20 straight years. Currently, Hamlin is the only driver in the Cup Series who can say that. He said the relationship with JGR means “a lot” to him, crediting them for everything he now has today.

“They’re the ones that went out on a limb and hired me when I had nothing,” said Hamlin. “They took a chance on me and JD (Gibbs) obviously believed in me quite a bit. So yeah, you want to pay back that loyalty to the family that gave you that start and you know, it’ll be well over 20 years that I’ll be with them and couldn’t imagine racing for any other organization, much less family.”