Will JGR Pit Crew Swap Help Denny Hamlin?

Will Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin switching pit crews pay dividends for Hamlin’s NASCAR Cup Series playoff run?

Luken Glover: With Kyle Busch eliminated from title contention and Denny Hamlin looking strong, it was the right move. We all know the woes the No. 11 team has experienced on pit road. Hamlin’s crew ranked 18th entering Bristol Motor Speedway while Busch’s ranked eighth. A fast pit stop put Kyle Larson in a position to capture the 2021 championship. Any advantage there has to help.

Amy Henderson: At the very least it won’t hurt. Hamlin has had a lot of mistakes made in the pits, and while he’s the king of speeding, most of them weren’t on him. With only two contenders left, and Busch on his way out, the team made the move they hope will bring Hamlin a title. Remember that a crew swap earlier this year made a huge difference to both Christopher Bell and Bubba Wallace. Both have since won races. Sometimes a move like that ignites a team, and even if this one doesn’t, Hamlin’s getting an experienced Cup crew that knows how to deliver a stop.

Mike Neff: It can’t hurt. We have seen Hamlin’s crew struggle during the playoffs before. Busch’s crew is consistently one of the top crews on pit road. Avoiding two or three pit miscues could easily be the difference between championship and elimination.

Andrew Stoddard: Thanks to the fine folks at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet, we can get a better idea of just how much swapping pit crews can aid Hamlin’s title hopes. According to pit crew data from the first 29 races of the season, the average four-tire pit stop for Busch’s No. 18 crew lasts 11.18 seconds. That’s good for eighth in the Cup Series. On the other hand, Hamlin’s No. 11 over-the-wall crew completes a four-tire stop in 11.499 seconds, which only ranks 18th among Cup crews. In the NASCAR playoffs, where every millisecond counts, an average of three tenths of a second per pit stop could be monumental. Therefore, the pit crew swap will be a great boost to Hamlin’s bid for a championship.

Stephen Stumpf: After the 23rd race of the season at Michigan International Speedway, the No. 11 team had 31 pit-road penalties on the season. While a handful of the penalties were from Hamlin speeding on pit road, the number almost feels too absurdly high to be true. Hamlin has shown flashes of dominant speed even in a down year, but the pit road miscues have left the No. 11 team playing catchup throughout many afternoons for much…