Denny Hamlin (fourth) led Toyota with a top-five effort in the season finale at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday. Hamlin finishes fourth in the final 2020 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) point standings after an incredible season with seven NCS victories overall, including his third career Daytona 500 win.
Toyota Racing Post-Race Recap
NASCAR Cup Series (NCS)
Phoenix Raceway
Race 36 of 36 – 312 miles, 312 laps
TOYOTA FINISHING POSITIONS
1st, Chase Elliott*
2nd, Brad Keselowski*
3rd, Joey Logano*
4th, DENNY HAMLIN
5th, Jimmie Johnson*
10th, MARTIN TRUEX JR.
11th, KYLE BUSCH
17th, CHRISTOPHER BELL
22nd, ERIK JONES
31st, DANIEL SUÁREZ
36th, TIMMY HILL
*non-Toyota driver
TOYOTA QUOTES
DENNY HAMLIN, No. 11 FedEx Express Toyota Camry, Joe Gibbs Racing
Finishing Position: 4th
What were you dealing with behind the wheel?
“We were a little off handling, but overall car speed, we just didn’t have enough. Our next best teammate was 10th, so as an organization we have got to get a little better, especially on the short tracks. It seems like we were a little bit off all year, and that was all it had, that’s for sure. I was pushing for everything I had. The FedEx Camry just didn’t quite have enough today, and we ended up fourth.”
What more did you need in your race car today to run at the front of the field?
“We just needed a little bit of speed and handling. Just a little bit every lap. It was so, so small. At time we were pretty good and maybe I had the fastest car, but it was just a few laps here and there. We just needed a little bit more. Obviously, this package in particular we weren’t great this year and this was one of our better runs with it, but it just wasn’t enough really.”
How will you reflect on this 2020 season?
“No one has won more than we have over the last two years. Daytona 500 two years in a row, the final four two years in a row. I’m pretty proud of what this team is doing and what we are building toward. Proud of the effort. We will come back and do it again next year. I’m looking forward to it. We will win as many races as we possibly can to get ourselves back to Phoenix again with another shot, but I’m proud of this whole Joe Gibbs Racing FedEx team for giving me cars that are capable of winning every week.”
Toyota Racing PR
