Denny Hamlin’s win in the 2025 Enjoy Illinois 500 guarantees his advancement into the NASCAR Cup Series Round of 12, buying him some time to relax a bit amid the frantic schedule.
The 44-year-old is hoping this will be the year his long wait for a Cup Series crown comes to an end: he has the most wins in circuit history without the title.
Hamlin, whose five wins also include impressive showings in Darlington and Dover, sat down with his old friend Kevin Harvick on the ‘Harvick Happy Hour’ podcast and admitted he has a new hobby teaching him patience this season: fishing.
“There is so much chaos [around my house],” Hamlin said. “It is my moment [when] it’s quiet. We both live in a house with multiple children. Even your house at times is a chaotic spot where it’s like, I’m just trying to lock myself in a room and have some quiet for a second.”
“The water is the place for me to do that. I found enjoyment in just slowing down. It’s teaching me patience. You can go out there for just hours and hours and just keep casting and not even get a bite.”
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“But it teaches me patience, and that’s something I feel I need to improve on as a person, which is being a more patient person. I think that it’s helping with some life lessons, and if I can catch a fish on the way, that’s great.”
Hamlin’s win at Gateway Motorsports Park takes some of the pressure off the 44-year-old next week in Bristol. While the key for the Joe Gibbs Racing will be to get a win in future weeks, he expressed post-race that he’s trying to enjoy the victory he just earned while thanking his team
“It’s so big for everyone at Toyota and Joe Gibbs Racing,” Hamlin said. “The Toyota was just great there at the end. And so happy to get this victory, and my dad’s not feeling well at home. So just shoutout to him, the whole family’s here, so fantastic day, and it couldn’t be better./
“All I can do is just keep being a student of the game, keep trying to get better, and every week is a chance to get a little better. I just told (Bill Murray) him to talk to the guys behind me and make sure they stay behind me the rest of the race. So we made that happen.
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“Man, it’s just a great victory. Love that Denny Time flag [in the crowd]. You all can boo me, but you can either get on the bandwagon, or you can get run over by it,” he concluded.