NASCAR Cup Kansas
Denny Hamlin hit with back-to-back DNFs for the first time in 12 years
Hamlin can't seem to avoid mechanical gremlins lately, with clutch issues derailing his NASCAR Cup race at Kansas on Sunday
Nick DeGroot
Edited: May 12, 2025, 1:32 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Chris Graythen - Getty Images
It's now back-to-back DNFs for Denny Hamlin and there was absolutely nothing he could do to avoid either one. Both issues were mechanical, taking him out of contention at Texas Motor Speedway last weekend and now Kansas Speedway on Sunday.
At Texas, the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota dramatically caught fire before the end of Stage 1 as the engine let go. But at Kansas, it was a clutch issue plaguing Hamlin. He required a push start from his team every time he made a trip down the the pit lane.
But during a round of pit stops following Brad Keselowski's race-ending crash, Hamlin's car finally gave up as they tried to get it rolling out of the box. The car crawled to a stop in the middle of the pit lane and needed to be pushed behind the wall.
Adding insult to injury, that pit stop ended up being the final one of the race. He had almost nursed the car to the very end, completing 199 of 267 laps. Hamlin was running in third position at the time, but finished 36th in the 38-car field after the transaxle failed.
A rare experience for Hamlin
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Photo by: Jamie Squire / Getty Images
“Yeah, I think eventually just broke the transaxle trying to leave the stall there," said Hamlin back in the garage area. "Unfortunate for the Progressive Toyota team. Really fast again – just can’t keep it together right now.”
The good news for Hamlin is that he already has two wins this year, which has him safely locked into the playoffs. But before the issues at Texas and Kansas, Hamlin was enjoying an impressive run of 21 consecutive races where he finished on the lead lap.
Additionally, back-to-back DNFs is something Hamlin hasn't experienced since the 2013 season, but both of those were due to race-ending wrecks (Kentucky and Daytona).
Photos from Kansas - Race
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
2025 Kansas - Sunday
NASCAR Cup
34
Read Also:
NASCAR CupRyan Blaney "probably would have scared" Kyle Larson with more laps at Kansas
NASCAR CupNightmare season continues as Brad Keselowski crashes from P2 at Kansas
NASCAR CupUnstoppable in Kansas, Kyle Larson cruises to a dominant NASCAR Cup win
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Ryan Blaney: “I probably would have scared” Kyle Larson with a few more laps
Next article Winners and losers from the NASCAR weekend at Kansas
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Nick DeGroot
Hailie Deegan eying NASCAR Truck return but future plans remain uncertain
NASCAR Truck
NASCAR Truck
Phoenix
3 h
Hailie Deegan eying NASCAR Truck return but future plans remain uncertain
Kyle Busch remembered: Rowdy’s most notable Phoenix moments
NASCAR Cup
NASCAR Cup
Phoenix II
7 h
Kyle Busch remembered: Rowdy’s most notable Phoenix moments
9/11 after 25 years: How NASCAR went back racing following September 11 attacks
Feature
NASCAR Cup
Feature
NASCAR Cup
9/11 after 25 years: How NASCAR went back racing following September 11 attacks
Latest news
WEC Barcelona: Toyota scores dominant 1-2 to seal manufacturers’ title
WEC
WEC WEC
Barcelona
3 h
WEC Barcelona: Toyota scores dominant 1-2 to seal manufacturers’ title
Hailie Deegan eying NASCAR Truck return but future plans remain uncertain
NASCAR Truck
NSTR NASCAR Truck
Phoenix
3 h
Hailie Deegan eying NASCAR Truck return but future plans remain uncertain
When Can-Am made its controversial comeback
General
When Can-Am made its controversial comeback
Yamaha boss on MotoGP changes under Liberty: 'We must be careful not to lose our fans'
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Japanese GP
6 h
Yamaha boss on MotoGP changes under Liberty: 'We must be careful not to lose our fans'
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe