Denny Hamlin undergoes right knee surgery

Denny Hamlin underwent successful reconstructive right knee surgery Monday afternoon, Joe Gibbs Racing announced in a statement.

Hamlin tore the ACL in his right knee playing basketball Sept. 8. Because he had earned a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship playoff, the 35-year-old elected to delay surgery until the end of the 2015 season, which concluded last week. He drove the final 11 races injured.

The decision to drive hurt did not impact Hamlin’s performance, as he won the Chase opener at Chicagoland Speedway and finished second the following week. Overall, he amassed eight top-10 finishes over the final 11 races and was only eliminated from NASCAR’s playoffs due to mechanical reliability issues.

JGR said Hamlin is expected to make a full recovery in time for the start of the 2016 season, which begins Feb. 21 with the Daytona 500.

This is not the first time Hamlin has undergone ACL surgery. He tore the ligament in his left knee prior to the 2010 season and put off surgery until the off week following the March 29 race at Martinsville Speedway. He did not miss any races and won the events prior to the reconstructive surgery and two weeks following the operation.