UPDATE 2 8-31-2023: Denny Hamlin was made available to media on Thursday as part of the NASCAR Playoff Media Day. Part of the discussion centered around his contract negotiations:
Have you been consumed with your contract negotiations?
“I’ve got a lot of irons in the fire.”
Is it as close to being done as Joe Gibbs thinks it is to being done?
“I mean, I don’t have anything new to announce. I’m not trying to leak one way or another, it’s on to Darlington.”
Are you dealing with the same things as you were that you mentioned at Watkins Glen?
“Yeah, it’s trying to get all of the contracts done.”
Do you want to stay at Joe Gibbs Racing?
“100%.”
Have you started exploring other options if you don’t return to Joe Gibbs Racing?
“See that’s a play on words. That’s not nice. Why would you do that? (laughter) I have a race team. I always have options. If you’re just a driver, you are at the mercy of whoever will hire you. I will hire me.”
Could 23XI run three full-time cars next year?
“I mean, if an apocalypse comes, yeah.”
Is FedEx renewed for next year or will you find a partial sponsorship like you had this year?
“The relationship with FedEx has continued to be strong and they’re definitely going to be on the car next year. On the 11 car. I don’t know the details of it, but certainly we’re going to continue that partnership that’s been 20 years strong. I’ve got a great relationship – the 11, Joe Gibbs and FedEx. I’ve got a great relationship with all of them.”
— Toyota Racing —
UPDATE 8-29-2023: Joe Gibbs was on SiriusXM NASCAR radio on Tuesday and said, “hopefully there is going to be something to announced here real quick” when talking about Denny Hamlin’s contract renewal.
✍🏼 "Hopefully there's gonna be something to announce here real quick."
Joe Gibbs provided an update on the ongoing contract talks with @dennyhamlin ahead of the 2023 #NASCARPlayoffs ⬇️
🤞🏼 "We would love for him to […] go his entire career and retire (at @JoeGibbsRacing)." pic.twitter.com/h6Mut5U5Kr
— SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Ch. 90) (@SiriusXMNASCAR) August 29, 2023
ORIGINAL POST 8-20-204: Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin was made available to media after winning the pole for the NASCAR Cup Series event at Watkins Glen International on Saturday:
Do you intend to be back at Joe Gibbs Racing in 2024?
“I intend to for sure. It’s what I want, and I think it’s what Joe (Gibbs) wants. There’s just a lot of factors that are out of both mine and his hands. Again, if I didn’t own a team, I think this would be done by now, but there’s just a lot of different factors that play into it and whether we can get it done or not. All you hope is that this late in the season that everyone is putting their best foot forward to compromise and come up with the right deal that’s good for everyone.”
Is there a possibility something might change with Toyota?
“I’m not trying to insinuate anything for sure, but I think that I’m happy at Joe Gibbs Racing and Joe (Gibbs) is happy with me. I think that certainly with the Kyle (Busch) situation last year, Kyle’s ask was his ask. And Joe Gibbs needed sufficient funding on the car to do it. From the day one, to give you inside baseball, Joe said I could have zero sponsorship on your car. It doesn’t matter. We want you and this is what we’re going to do. It’s different in that sense. It’s easy to draw parallels because you hear I’m saying some things Kyle said and Joe is saying some very similar things, but there’s just more factors in play than just us for sure.”
Do you feel good about 23XI being with Toyota next year?
“We’re working on it. We certainly are very happy with Toyota. They’ve been great to me and helped me get this team off the ground. I’ve won the bulk of my races with their cars. I feel like it’s a partnership that should continue.”
— Toyota Racing —