Denny Hamlin ties Kyle Busch on NASCAR Cup Series’ wins list
Denny Hamlin’s victory Sunday in the Firekeepers Casino 400 Sunday at Michigan International Speedway tied the Joe Gibbs Racing driver with his late-teammate Kyle Busch at 63 wins in the series.
Both drivers are tied for ninth all-time on the series wins list.
Hamlin carried a black flag with the No. 18 printed on it during his post-race celebration. The “1” part of it was stylized like Busch’s No. 18 from his JGR days while the “8” was stylized like his Richard Childress Racing No. 8.
“The off-season, was rough for me, it was rough for the NASCAR family, we lost a lot of people,” Hamlin said to Prime post-race to former NASCAR competitor-turned-reporter Trevor Bayne. “This week, we lost Gentleman Ned, the original badass of the No. 11.
“We’re still thinking of Kyle, Samantha, Brexton and Lennix. It’s just an unbelievable feeling to be able to strap in every week, and I don’t take it for granted. This opportunity that I’m in, we’re making the best of it.”
The win was Hamlin’s third of 2026 and fourth at MIS. The win came at a track where Busch also won once (2011).
Ahead of Hamlin on the wins list is seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt with 76 wins.
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Dominic Aragon View All
Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.
From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book "All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story" with racer Geoff Bodine.
Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.
You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.