Even now, nearly 24 hours after the fact, it is difficult to properly process what happened to Denny Hamlin in the 2025 NASCAR season finale.
"In this moment," he said Sunday night, "I never want to race a car again."
The greatest driver in 77 years of NASCAR racing to never engrave his name on the coveted Cup had produced arguably the greatest season of his two-decade career and had dominated the season's final event. His goal was to be the highest finisher of the Championship 4. He did that, steering through an obstacle course of an evening that threw everything it had at the 44-year-old with a portfolio of past heartbreak in season-finale title chances.