DARLINGTON, S.C. -- Denny Hamlin has long proclaimed that his goal is to reach 60 wins before he retires. Now that's scored back-to-back wins in decidedly different ways, this seems far more realistic.
"I like our outlook to win a lot of races this year," Hamlin said after winning Sunday's Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway.
Hamlin was not the storyline for the majority of the race. He was buried in the pack during stage 1, and then he scored eight points in stage 2.
It wasn't until overtime that he and his team made their move. The pit crew delivered the fastest stop before the final restart, which put Hamlin into the lead. He never relinquished this lead as he held off the field to score win No. 56.
William Byron and Ryan Blaney had the best two cars in the field, but it was Hamlin who celebrated after he and his team capitalized on a late opportunity.
This was a far cry from the Cup Series race at Martinsville Speedway when Hamlin led 274 of the final 275 laps in a dominant performance.
"Man, it shows up the same in the stats column," Hamlin said about his Darlington win. "No one will ever remember years from now. They're just going to know we won Darlington, and they'll forget why, which is unfortunate for them.
"It's great the team got me one here. Now, like I said to (crew chief) Chris Gayle, if we can win races where we have a seventh to 10th place car, I feel good about going out there and executing when we've got the best car.
"Obviously, our pit crew is well and capable of keeping us up front. I can still do it. I can still do it at a high level."
Winning two races in a row is nothing new for Hamlin. He has done so previously in his Cup Series career, most recently in 2012. So why does this win at Darlington make his stated goal more realistic?
The simple answer is the NASCAR schedule. Hamlin has wins at multiple upcoming tracks in the Gen 7 era, starting this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway, where he has won two of the last three races. Hamlin also has Gen 7 wins at Kansas Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway, where NASCAR will compete in May.
The summer schedule features trips to Richmond, Dover, and Pocono. Hamlin has four combined wins at these tracks since 2022.
Winning races in the Gen 7 era is not easy, but it's also possible that Hamlin could get at least two more. It would push his career total to 58 wins, if not more.