Denny Hamlin receives regular season championship trophy ahead of NASCAR playoffs
Yahoo Sports • 1 min read • Latest: Sep 2, 2026, 11:06 PM
Last updated Sep 2, 2026
Denny Hamlin claimed the top spot in the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series regular season standings after finishing the first 26 races of the year. Although the sanctioning body shifted away from official regular-season trophy designations under the new 10-race Chase format, Hamlin received a custom trophy on Wednesday featuring a goat figurine to commemorate his performance. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver earned the No. 1 seed for the postseason, which begins Sunday at Darlington Raceway. He enters the final stretch with a 25-point lead over Ryan Blaney and a 35-point cushion over Tyler Reddick. Hamlin accumulated four victories and 14 top-five finishes while maintaining a perfect record of no DNFs during the regular season. The championship format now transitions into a 10-race stretch where the driver with the most total points secures the Cup Series title.
- •Denny Hamlin secured the No. 1 seed for the 2026 NASCAR Chase.
- •Hamlin recorded four wins and 14 top-five finishes during the 26-race regular season.
- •The 2026 postseason begins Sunday at Darlington Raceway with a 10-race format.
- •Hamlin leads second-seeded Ryan Blaney by 25 points entering the opening round.
- 11:06 PMYahoo Sports — Denny Hamlin Gets His Trophy After Winning 2026 NASCAR Regular Season Championship
"Denny Hamlin finished the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series regular season atop the standings. Now the No. 1 seed finally has some fitting hardware to show for it.
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