Denny Hamlin a two-time winner at Texas; sixth or better in four 2018 races

Hamlin ran 12 laps in Friday's first practice; sixth-fastest. He's 15/1 to win Sunday.

Denny Hamlin
#11 FedEx Office Toyota
Joe Gibbs Racing

Race Info:
Race: O’Reilly Auto Parts 500
Date/Time: April 8/2p.m. ET
Distance: 334 laps/501 miles
Track Length: 1.5 miles
Track Shape: Oval
Banking: 24 degrees
2017 Winner: Jimmie Johnson

Express Notes:

Press Kit: Download the 2018 FedEx Racing press materials at www.fedexracing.com/presskit, including bios for Denny Hamlin, Mike Wheeler and Joe Gibbs Racing leadership, program highlights and statistics.

Martinsville Recap: Denny Hamlin finished 12th at Martinsville Speedway, leading 111 laps and collecting his first Stage win of the 2018 season during the 500-lap event around the Virginia half-mile. Hamlin spent the race’s first two Stages racing within the top five until the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota sustained slight damage late in the race’s final Stage that prevented him for making a run at the checkered. Hamlin lined up fifth for the race’s final Stage, finally settling into fourth on lap 351. By lap 380, fifth-place contender Kevin Harvick caught up to Hamlin and challenged him for his position, and the hard-fought battle between the two competitors ultimately resulted in a damaged front bumper on the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota. A caution appeared shortly after the incident on lap 385, giving the #11 team a chance to assess the damage on pit road. The crew refreshed the #11 with four tires and fuel during the scheduled stop, however Hamlin was forced to visit pit road for a second time to fix the nose damage and avoid the car from further overheating. The additional stop cost Hamlin valuable track position, and he restarted 15th to complete the race’s final 109 laps. Hamlin picked up three spots during the long green-flag run, finding himself 12th when the checkered flag flew.

Texas Preview: The Series returns to action this Sunday at the 1.5-mile Texas Motor Speedway. Hamlin has led 220 circuits around the Fort Worth track and collected six top-five and 12 top-10 finishes in 24 starts in the Lone Star State. Last spring, Hamlin and the #11 team finished 25th at Texas after starting 17th.

Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares: This season, FedEx is tying the performance of the #11 FedEx Toyota on the track to its efforts to improve road safety through a new program, Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares, by donating $111 for each lap Hamlin leads and $11,000 for each race victory to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit working to protect kids on the road, at home and at play. FedEx will also contribute $111,000 to Safe Kids if the #11 team wins the 2018 NASCAR championship. New for the 2018 season, the Denny Hamlin Foundation will also match the total donation to Safe Kids Worldwide.

Hamlin led 111 laps at Martinsville last Monday, generating a $12,321 donation to Safe Kids on behalf of FedEx. After six regular season races, Hamlin has led193 laps resulting in an $21,423 donation to Safe Kids Worldwide which will ultimately be matched by the Denny Hamlin Foundation. Fans can track the total amount donated to date from the Delivering Laps for FedEx Cares program on the homepage of FedExRacing.com.

Hamlin Statistics:
Track: Texas Motor Speedway
Races: 24
Wins: 2
Poles: 0
Top-5: 6
Top-10: 12
Laps Led: 220
Avg. Start: 15.2
Avg. Finish 12.2

Hamlin Conversation:

How will you approach Texas Motor Speedway this weekend?
“Texas Motor Speedway is definitely a challenge and a different race track than what it used to be before they repaved it. Even though it’s physically one of the widest tracks on the circuit, it’s one of the fastest and narrowest that we race on since it has really turned into a one-lane track. We didn’t have our best race there last spring, but I feel like our team has really made some gains to be competitive this time around.”

FedEx Office’s Phoenix North District Along for the Ride at Texas: The Phoenix North District will be recognized for being the leading district based on FedEx’s February Feb FY18 President’s Club rankings by having its district code “D37” on the b-post of the #11 FedEx Office Toyota this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway.