If a FedEx exodus from the NASCAR Cup Series is imminent, could it lead to Denny Hamlin leaving Joe Gibbs Racing as well?
On Sept. 24, the Sports Business Journal reported that the longtime sponsor of the JGR No. 11 could either reduce its sponsorship further or leave NASCAR altogether following the 2024 season.
It’s no secret that FedEx has already greatly reduced its presence as Hamlin’s sponsor. It went from being a full-season sponsor to just doing 12 races last year.
After 29 of the 36 points-paying Cup races this year, FedEx has only been the primary sponsor nine times. However, FedEx will be on the hood this upcoming weekend at Kansas Speedway and could do a few more races before the season concludes.
Still, it seems like the shipping company is on its way out. Which, hey, kudos to FedEx for sticking around a decade longer than its competitor UPS.
But if 2024 is indeed the last ride for FedEx, that could mean Hamlin won’t be in the JGR No. 11 for much longer.
OK, before anyone takes off running with this theory, let me make one thing super clear: Hamlin will be with Gibbs in 2025. He is under contract, and it’s way too late in the year for both Hamlin and JGR to make a change for next season and have to start from scratch.
NASCAR contracts are super vague these days, but Hamlin signed a multiyear contract extension in September 2023. That means 2024 is year one of that deal and 2025 would be year two, making it multiple years. Whether he is locked in with the team for 2026 or has an option for that year is unknown, but with the great relationship Hamlin has with Joe Gibbs and his loyalty toward his longtime owner, I doubt he would ever break a contract with the team.
Of course, Hamlin could retire following the 2025 or 2026 seasons. After all, he’ll turn 46 years old following ’26.
But if the future NASCAR Hall of Famer does get to the end of that contract and wants to keep racing, it’s very possible he could drive something other than a JGR No. 11 for the first time in his career.
So how does FedEx’s potential departure impact that? For one, Hamlin has said on numerous occasions that he wanted to spend his whole career with one number, one sponsor and one team. FedEx leaving would wipe out one of those variables.
More importantly, few ever thought Kyle Busch would leave JGR, but that successful pairing ended after longtime sponsor M&Ms departed. Like Busch and like Matt Kenseth…
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