NASCAR Martinsville preview: Denny Hamlin’s stiffest competition is himself

Never lacking confidence, Denny Hamlin’s self-assurance is especially pronounced whenever NASCAR heads to Martinsville Speedway, the site of Sunday’s STP 500.

The track nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Southern Virginia is where Hamlin is at his best, with five wins and an eighth-place average finish in 20 career starts. Only Jimmie Johnson owns more victories (eight), possesses a better average finish (7.5) and has led more laps.

With Jeff Gordon now retired, Hamlin and Johnson are unquestionably the principle figures when it comes to navigating Martinsville, a half-mile short track that, unlike many venues on the NASCAR schedule, emphasizes a drivers’ ability over aerodynamics, engine horsepower and other factors beyond the control of the person turning the wheel.

But Hamlin doesn’t regard Johnson as his biggest competition Sunday. Instead, he views someone else as the driver to beat. Himself. An opinion Hamlin, the defending race-winner, disclosed when asked that very question by reporters Friday.

While that assertion may be construed as cockiness, just the latest proclamation by a driver who has a penchant of boasting, Hamlin’s assertion is backed by facts. In recent Martinsville races, he’s had a dominant car only for potential wins to slip away due to speeding penalties incurred on pit road.

Last fall, Hamlin was penalized not once, but twice. The first infraction came on Lap 53, necessitating he drop to the rear of the field on the subsequent restart. Although he recouped the lost track position, it came with a cost, as the No. 11 car suffered damage navigating the heavy traffic commonly seen at Martinsville.

The second penalty occurred during a pit stop with 80 laps remaining. To overcome this self-inflicted mistake, Hamlin had to skip pitting during a later caution and finished the race on old tires. He hung on to finish third, a result that could and should have been better.

And the November playoff race wasn’t the first occurrence where Hamlin was busted multiple times for speeding on Martinsville’s narrow pit road, having also happened in October 2012.

“I don’t know how many pit road penalties I’ve had here at this race track or why I choose to push it on pit road knowing that I have the speed on the race track that we’ve shown,” Hamlin said. “... The bonehead things that I’ve done -- I’ve had my penalties in the race where what does it really matter on Lap 80 if you gain a spot on pit road since you have so many more laps.”

Not putting himself in a position where he needs to scramble to overcome a deficit is something Hamlin is emphasizing this weekend -- except that’s also far easier said than done. With track position critical and passing difficult due to Martinsville’s tight confines, pit road is often the best opportunity to gain an advantage.

And because Hamlin generally qualifies so well -- his average starting position is 9.8 -- he often gets a pit stall that offers the chance to be aggressive getting on and off pit road. Temptation that carries great risk, however.

“I think that really qualifying good has hurt us,” Hamlin said. “It’s put us in position to give us the option to go for it on pit road at times when probably backing off would have been smarter.”