Forgive #11-Denny Hamlin if he has that far-away gaze this weekend. He’s falling in love. Well, he’s trying to fall in love. His affections, though, aren ‘t toward a person but a place ‘ Dover International Speedway. Hamlin, who has won three of the last five NASCAR Sprint Cup races, has openly admitted that Dover is his worst track in the 10-race title Chase. Complicating Hamlin’s situation is that Dover is likely the best track for points leader #48-Jimmie Johnson, who has won four of the last seven races there, including the June race. Hamlin is third in the standings, trailing Johnson by seven points. It is for such mental hurdles that Hamlin first consulted Bob Rotella, a sports psychologist, last year. As he sought advice on Dover this week, Hamlin challenged Rotella to give him something extra meaningful. Hamlin revealed a text-message exchange he had with Rotella to a handful of reporters Tuesday during a NASCAR Hall of Fame appearance. Hamlin first texted Rotella: ‘I need some positive influence on the week coming up. It’s my worst track.’ Rotella responded: ‘Let your challenge for the week be to fall in love with this track. From the moment you arrive look at things to love about it and reasons to love it. All week look for things great and special to happen to you. Embrace the challenge of having your best attitude that you ‘ve ever had this week. Take pride in showing yourself how strong your mind is. Own your mind and own the race track that you race. Control your attitude and let your emotions own the world. Have fun.’ Simple enough, yet so hard to do for any driver, let alone one like Hamlin who has had two top-10 finishes in his last 10 starts there and an average finish of 24.2 during that stretch.(USA Today)(9-26-2012)
