Did Denny Hamlin fracture his relationship with crew chief Chris Gayle after championship loss? JGR driver answers after Vegas win

Denny Hamlin won the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday, securing his 61st career NASCAR Cup Series win. After the race, his Joe Gibbs Racing crew chief, Chris Gayle, spoke about their heartbreaking championship defeat last year, prompting questions about their relationship.

Hamlin and Gayle came painfully close to finally winning the 2025 title at Phoenix Raceway. He led 208 of the 319 laps in the finale before losing track position on the final caution with only three laps to go. The opportunity slipped away, leaving Hamlin once again without the title that has eluded him for over two decades.

Amid all of that, observers noticed that Hamlin and Gayle were not frequently seen together in the offseason, leading to speculation that the Phoenix defeat had strained their relationship. Gayle acknowledged the moment after the recent Las Vegas win.

“It feels great today,” Gayle said after the Las Vegas victory. “Leaving Phoenix, that was probably the most dejected I’ve been in my life… I probably sat around for three days rethinking everything I could’ve ever done.”

“It took me three days to get over it, and then I felt horrible because Denny’s going through all those things he’s going through at the time… From a personal side, how can you not feel bad? I felt like I could have delivered that championship to him and I wasn’t able to it and then he has to go through all this.”

Denny Hamlin, however, made it clear that the situation was never personal.

“I don’t want it to reflect badly on me or him,” Hamlin said in the post-race press conference (6:56 onwards). “He left me alone. I didn’t have much interaction with Gayle until a couple weeks before the season. He just let me be.”

“I’ve somewhat always had that kind of relationship with my crew chiefs. It’s been more professional than personal. It doesn’t reflect how I think of him as a crew chief or a person. I’ve always kept my work personnel and friendship personnel separate.”

Hamlin also acknowledged that the Phoenix moment lingered for both of them.

“I know that he felt horrible. Not that it was his fault. Maybe I could have done something. That was just a moment that certainly he wishes he could have back and I wish I could have back,” Denny Hamlin continued. “But we both went through it for some time. By the time I got back to him, he was in a better spot. And we never talked about it.”

Denny Hamlin’s Las Vegas win carries emotional weight. In October last year, he claimed the 60th victory of his career at the Nevada track in the NASCAR playoffs. He dedicated the victory to his father, Dennis Hamlin, who was battling terminal illness then.

The months that followed were even harder. Hamlin’s father later died after a devastating house fire in North Carolina, while his mother was critically injured. The tragedy came after an already emotional season and forced the veteran to step away mentally from racing for a period. When the 2026 season began, Hamlin admitted he needed time to regain his focus.

Denny Hamlin says he and Chris Gayle will “win and lose together”

Denny Hamlin emphasized that he never blamed Chris Gayle for the late strategy call in the 2025 championship race. The decision to take four tires in the closing laps was one both driver and crew chief believed could deliver the title.

When asked whether he had any deeper conversations with Gayle about the Phoenix finish before the Las Vegas race, Hamlin said the topic barely came up.

“No. I mean, we didn’t talk about it,” Hamlin added in the press conference (9:47 onwards). “If we did, it was like 15 seconds. I think he might have said (something), and I told him, ‘I don’t care. It’s fine… I’m with you.’”

Hamlin explained that aggressive calls were part of racing, and he has always supported his crew chiefs when they make them.

“Same thing when (Chris) Gabehart stuck a 10 inch piece of tape on the front grill and blew the engine, when I am charging to the front,” he said. “It’s fine. You’re going for it. It didn’t work out.”

For Denny Hamlin, the philosophy is simple.

“We’re going to win and lose together,” he said. “It’s been an absolute pleasure to work with Chris Gayle for these wins over the last 40 races or so. He’s a great guy and so underrated in what he does.”

The Las Vegas result offered proof that the partnership is still working. Denny Hamlin led 134 laps and held off Chase Elliott in the closing run to capture his first victory of the 2026 season.