A stray puppy brought Hamlin’s bad luck waiting after a driver’s advances in the NASCAR – National playoffs Achi-News

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The dog can wait — at least for another round of the NASCAR playoffs.

The future of little Lulu, daughter of the stray puppy Denny Hamlin found under the Gateway Arch in St. Louis in June, has been in doubt since Hamlin decided that adding to his home run was over.

Hamlin even had statistics to back up his claims.

Before Lulu returned to North Carolina for a life of luxury with the three-time Daytona 500 winner and his two young daughters, Hamlin had three wins, an average finish of 12th and had finished every race.

He also came first in the Cup Series.

The next week, Hamlin’s engine blew for his first DNF of the season. He crashed at Indianapolis, crashed again at Daytona, was dealt a severe penalty by NASCAR for something Toyota did to his engine that took him out of contention for the regular season championship, and the playoffs began in the seventh place in the standings.

Then the first two races of the opening round were disastrous and Hamlin went to Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night in danger of being eliminated from the 16 driver field. That’s when he (jokingly) started looking to rehome Lulu, much to the dismay of his daughters.

But when his fourth place in Bristol – he thought he would have to win the race to avoid elimination – advanced him to the second round of the play-offs, Lulu was saved. That was the first thing 11-year-old Taylor asked on the way to the pool as she stood in front of her father’s car.

Crew chief Chris Gabehart had packed up and was on his way when Taylor called him over to her.

“Can Lulu stay though?” she asked.

“Close enough. Close enough,” Gabehart replied. “She survived another week.”

Taylor pumped her fists in joy and said twice, “Let’s Go!”

Hamlin, with 54 career Cup wins, is considered along with Hall of Famer Mark Martin as the greatest drivers to ever win a Cup title. He’s come close – he finished runner-up to Jimmie Johnson in 2010, finished third twice, and has advanced to the final round of winning seasons several times only to come up empty.

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He turns 44 in November and his lack of a championship ring has become something of a running gag among Hamlin and his friends. When he got engaged last December to longtime partner Jordan Fish, the mother of his daughters, he noted in the social media caption that the ring count was 1 for Jordan, 0 for DH.

Time is not on Hamlin’s side anymore, especially not with how Kyle Larson is running right now. Larson led all but 38 of the 500 laps on Saturday night to take Bristol to his fifth win of the year, and Christopher Bell, Hamlin’s teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, is actually the current points leader and has reached the last four last two. seasons.

Hamlin is not giving up on his quest for that elusive Cup championship.

Next up is Kansas Speedway, where Hamlin has four career wins, including the 2023 spring race. He was second in last year’s playoff race and fifth in May.

“It’s all offense from this point on,” he said. “We’re going to Kansas, a track we’ve been really good at, and I’m looking forward to the rest of the run.”

And, for now at least, Lulu gets to stay at Hamlin House.

& copy 2024 The Canadian Press