There were some snide muttered comments and knowing head shakes as soon-to-be rookie of the year candidate Denny Hamlin answered questions in January during a media tour of Joe Gibbs Racing.
The 25-year-old Hamlin, who won a pole and had three top-10 finishes in a seven-race NASCAR Nextel Cup warmup last fall, was showing a little too much confidence for some of the veteran observers at the session.
``I don't see why we can't win a race,'' Hamlin said. ``Realistically, we're looking to pick up about five top-five finishes and finish in the top 10 most of the other times. If we can do that, we can easily finish in the top 15 in the points by the end of the year.
``After last year, our expectations are high enough where if we don't get the finishes we need, it will be a big disappointment.''
Sure, rook!
Well, here it is nearing the end of August and Hamlin and his No. 11 JGR Chevrolet are having just the kind of season the youngster envisioned.
After a ninth-place finish last Sunday at Michigan, this year's leading rookie in a big, talented class of first-year drivers is eighth in the standings, battling for a spot in the 10-man, 10-race Chase for the championship.
He goes to Bristol for Saturday night's key event 39 points ahead of 10th-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. and 88 in front of 11th-place Kasey Kahne. But Hamlin also is only 48 points behind fifth-place Tony Stewart.
So far this season, the kid ``discovered'' by JGR president J.D. Gibbs has two more poles, two wins _ both at Pocono _ four top fives and 11 top 10s in 23 races. His consistency has given Hamlin a 44-point edge in the rookie race over Clint Bowyer, who is 19th in the points.
Hamlin's first full season in Cup got off to a great start with an upset victory in the non-points Bud Shootout at Daytona only a few weeks after his brash statements at the Gibbs team headquarters in suburban Charlotte.
``I think that things changed a lot for me after the Bud Shootout,'' Hamlin said. ``Before, I could go anywhere and only people in the garage knew who I was. And then, after the Shootout, it was different. I guess you could call it fame.
``Then, it seemed like each of the Pocono wins added another step and I was noticed by a lot more people. It's been fun.''
Hamlin has been in and out of the top 10 several times since first breaking through _ taking ninth place with his first Pocono win in June.
``Until two or three weeks ago, it definitely was a situation where we were going for it every chance we got,'' Hamlin said of the team's strategy. ``Loudon (N.H.) was a prime example. We pitted and ended up running out of fuel on the last corner. Luckily, we finished seventh.
``We're on a pretty good run right now, with five top 10s in a row. And we've just got to keep doing that. And we're taking the safe route from now on, as far as pit strategy and all that.''
Gibbs, son of team owner Joe Gibbs, said he began keeping an eye on Hamlin nearly three years ago.
``We started watching him and spent some time with him when he was shaking down some Late Model cars with the diversity team that we'd started with Reggie White,'' Gibbs noted.
The Gibbs team didn't even have a ride available for the youngster when it signed him.
``I just said to him, `Let's sign you up and we'll do something,''' Gibbs said. ``We actually went out and leased a truck deal for him _ a low-budget truck deal. It was maybe five or six races. And he was really good. Then we put him in a Busch race at the end of 2004 and it's been uphill from there.''
Hamlin finished eighth in that 2004 race, then ran the full Busch schedule for JGR in 2005, finishing fifth in the points. This year, running both Cup and Busch, he has been even better in the developmental series, winning seven poles and two races and currently sitting second only to runaway leader Kevin Harvick.
``If it ended now, and we don't do anything else, it's going to be a great year,'' Hamlin said. ``I learned last year. Not having a great car in the Busch Series, I just learned how to finish races. Do what I need to do to finish.
``I just took that same attitude to the Cup series and do the best to try to finish what my car is capable of and it's gotten us to this point. My main focus all year is trying to be Raybestos Rookie (of the Year), and now we find ourselves in the championship chase as far as the Chase is concerned.''
A long shot? Maybe. But nobody's snickering at Hamlin any more.
